Never Too Young
by Jace Stevens
Summary: Not very good with this synopsis, so likely to change later... Jace Stevens is new to Kadic Academy, while Adele Belpois feels she is not worth it for being noticed by a boy. However, by a chance encounter, Jace meets Adele and together, together the two grow to become closer as part of a gang of friends held together by a mysterious secret only known by their parents.
1. Chapter 1

Note: I do not own Code Lyoko, nor any of it's characters, scenarios or locations. I also do not own any of the original characters noted in this story (all except one in Jace Stevens). Code Lyoko appears courtesy of Moonscoop Productions and Taffy Entertainment, while each original character noted is an original work of codelyokofan92 on deviantART.

**Chapter 1**

"Jason Gabriel Stevens, you'd better get up, or you'll be late for your first day at your new school," said an authoritative yet gentle voice coming from downstairs. Yes, it was that time he had feared would soon come to pass... the start of a new year of school. Only this time, 13-year old Jace Stevens was preparing to leave behind the comfort of his old junior high, and was preparing to attend a rather different kind of school; a school where the guidelines were more strict, and the grading tougher. Even though he had always enjoyed some of the stuff he learned from classes and even liked the idea of meeting new people, something inside the boy still caused some uncertainty as to what would happen at this new school. In fact, up until the summer, the young ascot-cap wearing boy had never heard of this school called Kadic Academy. But one thing was for sure, if the rumors were true about how teachers didn't allow for any bathroom breaks, lunches were more bland and awful, and you couldn't have any fun at all, maybe he should have begged his parents to let him stay at his old school.

"Aww mom," he said slinking down the stairs. "Do I really have to go to this school?  
What if everything my friends back in our old town said was true? What if this place really is as bad as they said it is?"

Setting his breakfast before him, Jace's mother Victoria looked at her son seeing the uncertainty in his face and said calmly, "It'll be okay sweetheart. I felt the same exact way when I first started junior high..."

_"Oh boy, here we go again..." _he thought as his mother talked in the background. _"The old walk down memory lane." _

But rather than tuning her out during her speech, the boy's attention was suddenly caught when his mother simply said, "You know what I do when I get nervous about first experiences?"

"No, what?" he asked with genuine sincerity.

With two simple words in her mind, she knew there was one thing her son took great comfort in, "I pray."

It was at that moment Jace remembered how much his mother encouraged him to look to God for strength when times got tough, even when he was at his old school. Now being at a new school, the boy felt that it was only perfect to call on Him once again to help get through his first day.

Noticing his ease of tension, Victoria encouraged her son by praying for him and asking Christ to be there with him as he started this new journey at his new school. In his own mind, Jace also prayed he'd be able to make some good friends on his first day, and maybe even (Lord willing), meet someone special he could get to know as more than just a friend.

As the two said "Amen," Victoria looked up at the clock and noticed that Jace only had 15 minutes to make it for registration.

Finally, with a quick bite to eat, and a swig of orange juice, Jace rushed out the door with backpack strapped on, running around the corner, off to make his way to register for his new classes as a student at Kadic Academy.

* * *

"Adele, sweetie, wake up! You slept in a little too long, you're gonna be late." said another calm and soothing voice shouting from the upstairs kitchen. After a few seconds, a young 13-year old girl appeared to emerge from her sheets, stretching to wake herself up and get ready for a new year at her school. Even being a second year student at Kadic Academy, Adele Belpois had always enjoyed the greater concentration of learning she could obtain from classes, a trait possessed by her father Jeremie, who was also himself, as much an egghead when he was attending. Yet somehow, even with the attention to her studies, the young girl still found time to enjoy life's many splendors for her age, which included hanging out with her friends often and even enjoying some quiet poetry every now and then.

Racing down the stairs to beat out her sister Maya to the table, Adele ran into the kitchen to grab her chair, but forgot that her sister knew a shortcut through the living room and saw her sitting there already. With an exasperated sigh, the blonde teen girl said, "One of these days, I'm gonna beat you at something!"

"All in good time sis," said Maya chuckling as she sipped her tea. "All in good time."

As breakfast was served by for them both, the girls' mother Aelita couldn't help but notice that Adele seemed a little troubled petting the family cat she named Juliet. Appearing not to touch her food at all, her mother placed her hand on her shoulder, she sat on the chair next to her and asked, "Adele sweetie, is everything okay?"

Looking slightly off-base, the youngest of the two children asked, "Mom, do you think I'm, well... do you think I'm pretty?"

Taken aback by her question, Aelita answered in a calm manner, "Of course you are honey. Why on earth would you ever think you're not pretty?"

Slightly afraid to say why, the young blonde teen finally said, "Well, it's just that, I tried asking this boy a few days ago if he wanted to go eat pizza together sometime, and he said he didn't want to because he thought I looked like a nerd because of how I dress. And he even told all the boys that were in my English class that I wasn't worth their time."

Aelita felt shocked to hear that her daughter was given such a hurtful statement. But with a soothing tone, the mother of two told her daughter, "Adele sweetheart, don't listen to anything those boys have to say. If they don't want to go out with you, it's their loss, not yours."

"Yeah sis, any boy would be crazy to think he could find someone better than you," Maya added as she tried to aid in the conversation.

"She's right honey," continued her mother. "I remember when you were first born. When I looked at you, I said to your father, 'I see a bright, fun-loving girl who God brought into the world to do great things.' It doesn't matter what they think sweetie, you just be who God created you to be and no one else."

It was then that her mother said something to her that seemed to resonate in her mind pretty strongly, "And don't worry about the boy situation honey. I've got a feeling that soon, you're going to meet someone special, and he's going to be the one asking you to go out for pizza."

With a smile forming on her face, the young girl wrapped her arms in a tight embrace around her mother and said, "Thanks mom. I feel better now."

"That's my girl," she replied back. "Hey, you two had better hurry up and get going for your registration."

Reminded of the day's hectic events ahead, the two girls quickly finished breakfast and headed out the door to join up with their friends to begin another year of thrills and excitement on the campus of Kadic Academy.


	2. Chapter 2

Note: I do not own Code Lyoko, nor any of it's characters, scenarios or locations. I also do not own any of the original characters noted in this story (all except one in Jace Stevens). Code Lyoko appears courtesy of Moonscoop Productions and Taffy Entertainment, while each original character noted is an original work of codelyokofan92 on deviantART.

**Chapter 2**

At last, Jace finally arrived on the campus of Kadic Academy. At first sight, the school didn't seem to rough from what his friends had said. The grounds were kept up, the buildings didn't look dingy at all, and everyone seemed to be pretty easy-going as they walked around the campus.

"Well, looks like my friends were wrong so far," he said to himself walking through the gates. "Maybe they were just saying that stuff just to get my goat. Maybe things won't be too bad on the first day."

Before he could revel in that glow of confidence, a loud and boisterous male voice came out from the cafeteria shouting, "First year students, report to the cafeteria on the double for registration!" Looking out in his general direction, the man passing along this information added, "Hey you, with the black ascot-cap! That goes for you too."

At that moment, a chill ran down the spine of the already nervous boy as he quickly clenched his backpack strap and walked hesitantly towards the cafeteria. Suddenly things were looking like they were starting to take the turn his friends had warned him of.

Finally, after about two hours of long line-waiting and checking credentials for his attendance as a student not living on campus, Jace finally walked out from the hallowed halls of what would soon be his main location for lunch, and began to make his way to his first class which would surely put him in a better mood... General Science.

As he shuffled through his bag looking for his schedule to locate the classroom, the young teen suddenly freaked out and dropped his backpack, after being startled by the sound of an older male student's voice asking, "You must be new around here huh?"

Quickly trying to gather his things, Jace stuttered slightly as he picked up his materials saying, "Y-Yes. How did you guess?"

Handing him his Chemistry textbook was a boy who looked to be 15 years old dressed with a blue collared shirt with dark green pants and hair slightly slicked. As he handed him his Syllabus for the class, he mentioned, "It's actually a requirement for all incoming 6th graders and transfer students that they're required to attend Science first period for the new semester, so I could kinda tell."

"Oh I see," replied Jace. After zipping up the backpack, the newest member of Kadic Academy reached out his hand to shake the other boy's hand and said, "Thanks for helping me get all that together."

Following suit, the other boy replied, "Don't mention it. I've been there before, so I can definitely understand what you're going through. Name's Stern by the way, Kevin Stern. What's your name?"

Hesitant at first to return pleasantries, Jace broke through his nerves and said, "Stevens, Jace Stevens. Nice to meet you dude."

"Likewise," added Kevin. Looking up at the clock, both boys realized how late it was, and the veteran student bid Jace farewell, but not before saying, "Hey Jace, if you have any questions at all, or you want to hang out to find out more about Kadic, let me know, and I'd be happy to help."

Feeling slightly more reassured, Jace replied, "Thanks a lot Kevin! I appreciate it." And with one final wave, he quickly raced for the Science hall to get to class, even knowing he would be running late.

* * *

As Adele sat down to prepare for her day of science ahead, the blonde girl noticed her two close friends Yumiko Stern and Oliver Della Robbia arriving at the same time in a rather winded fashion, appearing to have ran all the way to class.

Noticing that Oliver about missed his chair as he sat down to his desk, Adele said with a perplexed expression, "Hey guys, why so short on breath? Run late again?"

Trying his best to catch his breath, Oliver held his hand up as if to say "_give me a few seconds,_" and when finally ready, he said, "Our dumb alarm clocks. Both Carine and Tristan messed with them last night to be funny, and we both ended up waking up an hour later."

"Even worse," added Yumiko. "Both our buses had already taken off, and so we we're forced to have to run the whole eight blocks to get here. I'm so getting Tristan back for this one!"

"Well, whatever you two end up planning, count me out of it," replied Adele, fearing the worst for both Yumiko's brother and Oliver's sister.

Before Oliver could explain his plan to exact revenge on Carine, Mrs. Lindbergh called class to order, and announced, "Class, we have a new student joining us today. He's a transfer student who comes to us from Paris, and I want you all to make him feel welcome."

Upon finishing her words, the new student walked into his class wearing a pair of dark navy blue jeans, had a black ascot-cap on, and wore a green turtle-neck sweater with a silver cross hanging from his neck.

Looking to the class, Mrs. Lindbergh introduced the new student, "Class, meet your new classmate, Jace Stevens."

After greeting Jace in a unified fashion, the teacher then asked Jace to tell more about himself, to which he replied, "Well... I'm originally from Paris, but my parents and I just recently moved to town. I like to write poetry and especially enjoy working with computers." After about a few seconds of awkward silence, the boy then let out a small ending blurb, "That's pretty much it."

After the introductions wrapped up, Jace was instructed to take his seat, which would be next to Adele. As he placed his books on the table and opened up his science book to the required page, the young poet extended his hand and said with an inviting tone, "Looks like we'll be sitting together this term. What's your name?"

Normally, Adele didn't care too much for the new students that would occasionally make their way to Kadic, but for some reason, as soon as she caught sight of this new boy in her science class, the young teen girl's heart suddenly skipped a beat at not only the mention of a couple of her favorite activities, but even the warm and friendly sound of his voice.

Letting out a little smile on her face, the shy young girl took hold of his hand and said sheepishly, "I'm... uh... I'm..."

Seeing that she was in need of a little help, Oliver lurched over his and Yumiko's desk saying, "Adele. Her name is Adele Belpois. Nice to meet you man.

"I'm Oliver Della Robbia, and this is Yumiko Stern," he continued with the introductions. "Just stick with us here at Kadic, and you'll be okay."

Flattered to hear such pleasantries, Jace shook each of their hands and said, "Nice to meet you all." At the moment, the boy looked back at Adele specifically who looked up for a minute at him, but then retreated into her textbook with what appeared to be a hint of pink on her face. Smiling, the newcomer teen who was scared out of his mind only a few moments ago now confidently said, "I think I'm definitely gonna like it here."


	3. Chapter 3

Note: I do not own Code Lyoko, nor any of it's characters, scenarios or locations. I also do not own any of the original characters noted in this story (all except one in Jace Stevens). Code Lyoko appears courtesy of Moonscoop Productions and Taffy Entertainment, while each original character noted is an original work of codelyokofan92 on deviantART.

**Chapter 3**

As things began to wrap up for Science for the day, Oliver approached Jace and touched him on the shoulder saying, "Hey Jace! Come with me and the girls. We want to introduce you to our gang."

Almost reluctant in his response, the boy quickly recovered and agreed to come with them.

Walking out from the science building, Yumiko noticed a group of students, two boys and two girls waiting by the beverage vending machines. The raven-haired girl then ran over to them and said, "Hey guys. Hope we didn't keep you waiting too long, science stretched on longer than expected."

"No worries," said one of the boys. "Geometry only let out a few minutes ago, so we just got here."

Recognizing a familiar student in the group, Jace waved and said, "Hey Kevin!"

Looking up from his soda, Kevin noticed Jace's black ascot and jokingly said, "Oh, hey Jace! Glad to see you made it through your first class alive."

"You're telling me," added Oliver acting exhausted. "Mrs. Lindbergh is way too hard to listen to all the way through for two hours. I thought I was gonna pass out from boredom."

It was at this moment another girl in the group noticed Jace's unfamiliar face with their usual three friends and said, "So, who's this kid?

"Wow Carine," said Oliver. "Very inviting."

"What?" she retorted. "I'm just curious, that's all. No need to start attacking."

Sticking his tongue at her, the blonde-haired boy said to Jace, "Don't worry about her, that's my sister Carine. She can be a little testy in the morning."

Continuing the introductions, Oliver began again saying, "Jace, let me introduce you to the gang... It looks like you already know Yumiko's older brother Kevin. That blonde haired beanstalk is my alleged sister Carine. That girl with the pink hair clinging to Kevin is Adele's sister Maya, who also happens to be Kevin's girlfriend. And that brown haired boy is Yumiko and Kevin's brother Tristan."

"Wow Oliver," said Carine. "You should've formed a new student welcoming committee. You could be in charge of meeting every new student that comes in to school. Of course, you'd likely scare away each new student with that kind of enthusiasm."

Everyone including Jace shared a laugh as Oliver showed a rather slumped look from Carine's words.

Finally, after the humor ceased Jace finally addressed everyone saying, "Nice to meet you all. You guys have definitely made being new much more enjoyable."

"You bet dude," said Kevin smiling. "We were all new at one time, so we can definitely hear where you're coming from.

Noticing her not saying much, Maya looked over at her sister and asked, "Adele, everything okay sis? You haven't said much today."

"Huh? Oh, no worries, I'm okay," she said appearing to still be slightly uneasy towards Jace.

"You sure?" asked her sister again for confirmation. "I just remember how you were feeling this morning and wanted to make sure."

Appearing to show a fake form of a smile, Adele looked up and said, "Seriously, I'm okay. How about we all get some lunch together?"

Ears perked at the word lunch, Oliver was about halfway towards the cafeteria while the others followed him to make sure they could still get something to eat before he consumed everything in sight.

As the others walked together, Jace continued to talk more with Kevin and his brother Tristan to get to know them better.

"So, if you guys don't mind my asking," he began, "how all do you know each other so well?"

Kevin replied, "You'll find it funny, our parents all know each other as friends from years ago. In fact, they actually met each other here at Kadic."

"Really?" asked Jace rather curiously. "What was life for them like here?"

"One word," said Tristan. "Busy. Our mom and dad would talk about how much they would hang with Carine and Oliver's father and Adele and Maya's mother and father each day after classes and things always seemed to hectic that they almost never focused on school."

"It's kinda weird," added Kevin, "it always seems to be a subject they don't like to talk about much, and even dodge talking about altogether. We can't figure out why, but maybe as things change, they'll open up and tell us what's going on."

Seeing that there was something interesting about those words from both boys, Jace replied saying, "I'd imagine it's probably tough. And I thought my first day here was drama enough."

Both boys laughed as Jace tried to lighten the mood, and the turtleneck wearing boy then proceeded to ask, "So, what are you parents' names?"

"Our mom and dad's names are Yumi and Ulrich," replied Tristan. "Maya and Adele's mom and dad are named Aelita and Jeremie, and Carine and Oliver's father is named Odd."

Slightly taken aback, Jace asked, "Oh I see. If I may ask, do Oliver and Carine have a mother?"

"They did," said Kevin with a solemn voice. "Their mother died when Oliver was about two years old. "

"Oh, I'm sorry about that." replied Jace.

"It's okay," replied Carine jumping into the conversation. "She apparently had brain cancer for about three years and didn't find out until shortly before my brother was born."

Adding to the conversation, Kevin said, "I met her a few times when I was younger hanging out with Carine and Maya. She was really nice."

"She was," said Carine slightly teary-eyed. "We miss her a lot."

Trying to be reassuring, Jace offered some kind words, "You know, even though she's not here now, that doesn't mean she's gone forever."

"I know," said Oliver's sister. "I just wish we could have had a little more time with her, you know? I guess we just feel a little cheated that she wasn't here longer."

Feeling their pain, Jace reflected to the memory of losing his grandfather at an early age but didn't have the chance to know him very well. But what helped him to deal with the pain of his family's loss, was the reassurance that he wasn't taken from his family, but that he was being received by God to be welcomed home to Heaven.

Hearing his words, something inside Carine appeared to work out a smile and the elder Della Robbia child said, "That's true. She may be gone, but at least there's no more cancer now."

"That's right," Jace replied with comfort in his voice.

As the four continued to talk, Jace looked off to the corner of his eye, and could see Yumiko and Adele having some girl talk that he figured was not for his ears to hear. Looking at the two talking, he was stunned to see how pretty of a smile she had when she was sincerely happy and social with the group. So stunned, a slight shade of pink appeared on his face, which forced him to quickly turn around as Yumiko looked his way.

Meanwhile, near the back of the group, Yumiko asked Adele, "So, what was up with you earlier? You know, the stammering and all?"

"What do you mean?" she asked appearing caught off guard.

"Oh, you know what I mean," replied Yumiko getting a sly smile on her face. "When Jace wanted to shake your hand, you simply said, 'I'm... uh... I'm...' I've never seen you react that way to anyone when you meet them for the first time."

With another sheepish response, Adele said, "Well, I just... uh... alright fine, I blanked. I guess I just couldn't figure out what to say."

Now Yumiko's smile turned even more into a devious grin and she placed her hand on her shoulder and said, "Aww, Adele. Do you have a crush on him?"

"What?!" whispered Adele rather loudly, stirring the attention of her sister in front of her. Noticing her concern, the young teen said quickly to her sister, "Sorry Maya, Yumiko was just telling me something interesting, that's all."

"No worries," she replied. "You only share your secrets with me if you feel comfortable."

Going back to her conversation, Adele said more discreetly, "I don't have a crush on him, I've only met him.

"And besides," she continued, "he probably wouldn't be interested in a girl like me. He probably would prefer a more taller and prettier girl."

Trying her best to reassure her, the only sister of Kevin and Tristan took on the role as Adele's other sister saying, "Adele, you need to stop thinking of yourself as not good enough for a boy. Just because things haven't worked out with other boys, doesn't mean you give up trying."

It was at this moment that Adele heard some reassuring words that felt almost like dejâ-vü to her conversation with her mom and sister, "Besides, I've got a feeling Jace would definitely want to get to know you more. You don't know this, but while we've been talking, I saw him blush a little looking back over here."

"Really? He did?" asked Adele slightly curious, trying not to let on specific feelings.

"Yep," replied Yumiko smiling. "Maybe we can find out more about him during lunch. Who knows, maybe he might ask you out sometime."

Adele pondered on that thought as they prepared to get lunch at the cafeteria. Maybe it wouldn't hurt to give him a chance. Maybe he was different than other boys, and he might be the one who would think she was worthwhile.


	4. Chapter 4

Note: I do not own Code Lyoko, nor any of it's characters, scenarios or locations. I also do not own any of the original characters noted in this story (all except Jace Stevens and Katie Michaels). Code Lyoko appears courtesy of Moonscoop Productions and Taffy Entertainment, while each original character noted is an original work of codelyokofan92 on deviantART.

**Chapter 4**

Oliver practically stormed the doors of the cafeteria as he rushed in and grabbed his tray to see what was on tap for today's menu. But before he could even take advantage of the day's offerings, the young boy about lost his breath at the sight of a young Asian girl standing only slightly taller than him sporting long black hair, and wearing a pink tank top and dark navy blue jeans with low-set brown-colored heels.

Without hesitation, the boy quickly regained his composure and walked over to meet the girl sitting on her own at a nearby table where the others were sitting at.

When he arrived at her table, the youngest of the Della Robbias cleared his throat and said, "Hey there. Couldn't help but notice you were sitting here on your own. Thought I'd come over and change that."

Appearing to be both flattered and caught off guard by his invitation, the girl said, "Um, okay. I'd like that."

Quickly reacting as though he had been immediately shut down again like previous times before, Oliver responded saying, "No, okay that's fine." However, it took nearly four seconds for the boy to realize she didn't tell him to go away.

"Wait, did you say you didn't mind eating lunch together?" he replied with an inquisitive look.

"Um, yes... I did," she said with a slight smile on her face, appearing to be rather shy.

A smile forming on his face, Oliver said with a more calmer demeanor, "Awesome. Just let me go get my lunch and I'll be right back."

"Okay," she said as he quickly took off to grab his tray.

Sitting from their usual table, having witnessed the whole thing take place, Oliver's sister Carine looked on and said, "Oh boy, there he goes again. Doing two of his favorite things at the same time."

"What would that be?" asked Jace as he sat down next to Adele with his tray in hand, causing the girl to blush more intensely than before.

"Eating and hitting on a girl that catches his eye," answered Carine. "It's typical for him, but this is the first time I've seen him actually be successful in doing so. My guess is that it won't take too long though for it to end quickly."

As the others contemplated over how long Oliver could keep his lunch time rendezvous, Jace tried to engage in conversation with Adele to try to get her to feel comfortable around him.

"So Adele," he began. "Your sister told me you really like animals. Do you have a favorite one you like?"

Still trying her hardest to overcome her onset shyness, Adele finally opened her mouth and said, "Um... well... I've always liked cats."

Happy she finally said something to him, Jace continued the conversation saying, "Really? What about them do you like?"

"Um," she began again. "I guess it's because when I was younger, I found a cat on my way home from school one day that looked like she didn't have a home. I gave her some of my leftover sandwich and she ended up following me all the way home."

Letting out a slight giggle which Jace found rather cute about her, Adele continued, "I remember when my mom saw her, her immediate answer was no, but I practically begged her to let me keep her and take care of her, and finally my dad came in and said, 'A pet is a huge responsibility sweetie, if you decide to take her in, it's your responsibility to feed her, brush her, and take care of her.' After I said I would about three different times, he let me keep her and to this day, she's been one of my best friends aside from the others."

"Wow," he replied back. "That's so cool you rescued one off the street. Pretty daring, but pretty cool. Sounds like you must have a pretty caring heart to do something like that."

"Really? You think so?" she asked with a slight blush forming on her face.

"You bet," Jace said with sincerity. "It kind of reminds me of when I lived back in Paris when my parents and I would go and serve at homeless shelters and provide food and talk about Jesus with the people there."

Hearing his last few words, Adele ears perked up as she asked him, "Oh really? You're a Christian too?"

"I am," Jace replied. "If I may ask, when did you first accept Christ into your heart?"

"About a few years ago," she said feeling a little more at ease talking to Jace. "Well, to be honest, it was my family who helped me to accept Him as my Savior. I hadn't known too much about God before then, but after our grandma passed away when I was ten, I realized I wanted to be able to join her in Heaven someday.

"So my sister helped me to pray to God and accept Jesus into my heart. Since then, I feel like He's my second Father and friend when I'm need of help."

Seeing how much Christ had created an impact on her life, Jace shared his testimony with her explaining about his discovery of Christ when he was at a church camp with his friends back in Paris. He also explained how he didn't know how to communicate with others very well growing up, and used writing as a means to let his voice be heard, and how after accepting Christ as his Savior and getting more involved in church, he was able to gain more confidence to speak both in writing and in words.

"Wow, I would have never guessed," said Adele rather amazed to hear his story. "I would have thought you would be more of a boy who would be popular immediately and wouldn't care about hanging out with kids like us."

Taken aback by her words, Jace said, "Nah, let them have their cliques and popularity. I'd much rather hang out with you and your friends."

Now with a genuine smile on her face, Adele uttered some words that she couldn't believe came out of her mouth, "You know, you're pretty cool too Jace. I think I'm gonna like getting to know you."

Smiling back at her, Jace replied, "Likewise."

Before any other words could be said, everyone noticed Oliver appearing to get up with the girl he was talking to during lunch, and walked with her to her class. At that moment, everyone in the group realized their bet made was done for and as they began trading the food they bet with each other, Carine said, "Well what do you know, looks like there's a first time for everything."

"Indeed," Jace reaffirmed looking around him at his new friends. "There sure is."


	5. Chapter 5

Note: I do not own Code Lyoko, nor any of it's characters, scenarios or locations. I also do not own any of the original characters noted in this story (all except one in Jace Stevens). Code Lyoko appears courtesy of Moonscoop Productions and Taffy Entertainment, while each original character noted is an original work of codelyokofan92 on deviantART.

* * *

**Chapter 5**

After nearly a few more hours of what seemed like endless classes and lecturing, Jace and his new friends finally finished the school day and walked into the beautiful sunset air ready to come down and chill.

"Finally!" shouted Oliver. "I thought it would never end!"

Getting use to Oliver's melodrama, Jace jumped in and said, "Oh come on Oliver, it wasn't that bad."

"Jace's right," added Adele. "I found the poem read to be pretty enjoyable."

"Well, all I know is, I'm glad the day is done," said an equally exhausted Maya as she latched onto Kevin's arm for support.

Looking into his girlfriend's eyes, Kevin placed a gentle kiss on her lips and said, "And now there's the weekend to look forward to."

"Aww, ain't that just cute?" budded in Yumiko being a buzzkill to the moment.

"Speaking of romance," said Carine. "Oliver, who was that girl you were talking with today and that you walked with to class?"

Remembering right as she mentioned it, her brother said, "Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you guys, she's a transfer student too just like Jace. Her family comes from America, but she's here on her own studying abroad."

"Oh really?" asked Yumiko. "What's her name? Maybe we could meet her."

Appearing to daydream a little, Oliver finally came to and said, "Oh, sorry, her name is Katie, Katie Michaels. She can be kinda shy when you first meet her, but she's a pretty energetic person once you get to know her."

_Wow, and here I thought I was the only one who was going through the new student jitters, _thought Jace as he continued to hear more about Katie.

After Oliver finally ceased going on forever about Katie, Yumiko suggested for the entire group to get together for a dinner party over at her parents' place, which seemed like a great idea to everybody including Jace.

With permission being the only obstacle remaining, everybody chose to volunteer to bring something for the party. Yumiko and Tristan would contribute food and snacks, while Kevin and Maya would be in charge of drinks, and Carine and Oliver would choose the music for the party.

"Looks like it will be up to Jace and Adele to choose a good movie for us to watch," said Yumiko, somewhat intent on making them end up doing something together.

After hearing their task, the two young teens couldn't help but show a slight blush at the thought of looking for a movie together, just the two of them.

"Hey, are you two listening to me?" yelled Yumiko trying to snap them out of their trance.

Shaking his head, Jace quickly replied, "Oh, um yeah, we got it covered."

And with that, the group quickly dispersed and went off to fulfill their assigned tasks. But before Jace and Adele could take off for the nearby video store, a text came in on Adele's phone sent from her sister reading, _"Make sure to find something everyone will enjoy. Maybe a good action flick or a romantic comedy. Nothing scary or gory. See you both later. - Maya."_

"Who was that?" asked Jace.

"Oh, it was just my sister," said Adele. "She wanted us to get either an action movie or a romantic comedy. I don't know what to get though."

At the mention of two of his favorite genres of movies, Jace had an idea of a couple movies they could watch and said, "Hmm, I think I may have an idea."

In a flash, the two then disappeared from the Kadic campus and walked together headed for the nearby movie store over by the Stern family home. As they walked together along the cracked pavement that was the sidewalk, Jace asked Adele, "So, if it's okay to ask, what are your parents like?"

"Oh, no problem," replied Adele. "I love them both a lot. My mom's name is Aelita and she works in the same computer maintenance company my father Jeremie works in. They definitely love each other a lot like they love me and my sister. But it's kinda strange, whenever me or my sister ask them about how they first met or their days in school, they seem like they don't want to talk about it as much. It's almost as if they're afraid to tell me and my sister about their past."

"Really?" asked Jace puzzled at her explanation. "How odd. I always figured most parents would always be open to telling their kids about how they got to know each other or even grew up. Or at least, that's what I thought based on the fact my parents almost always keep offering words of wisdom every time I turn around."

It was at that moment that Jace noticed Adele let out a small sigh with her head hanging down slightly. Trying to be reassuring, Jace said, "But you know, I'm sure they have a good reason for not saying much. Maybe they're doing it to protect you both from something that may have happened a long time ago."

"Maybe," replied Adele still feeling confused and concerned. "I guess maybe I just want to know, because I want to see what's kept them together for so long, and maybe even experience that kind of moment myself someday."

"You're not alone there," said Jace feeling her same degree of curiosity. "After hearing how long my parents have been together, I think it would be cool to experience something like that too. Not right now of course, but definitely someday."

Realizing what they both just said to each other, the two teens suddenly began to blush a crimson shade. After about a few seconds, Jace tried to snap them both back to sense saying, "Well... uh... we should probably get going to get the movie for tonight."

"Uh... yeah, we don't wanna be late." replied Adele trying her best to snap out of her own state of embarrassment.

After about a few more blocks of walking, the two finally arrived at the video store and began to peruse the wide selection of action and romantic comedy films, trying to find the perfect fit for the party.

As he browsed through the vast library, Jace suggested the movies _Rush Hour 3_ for some action, and _Along Came Polly_ for a romantic comedy. Adele had never heard of either film, but was cool with Jace selecting the films after he read the film descriptions.

With the movies paid for, Jace and Adele departed from the video store and made their way for the Stern family home a couple blocks down, both anticipating the fun awaiting them and the potential new memories that would be created from a weekend together with friends.


	6. Chapter 6

Note: I do not own Code Lyoko, nor any of it's characters, scenarios or locations. I also do not own any of the original characters noted in this story (all except one in Jace Stevens). Code Lyoko appears courtesy of Moonscoop Productions and Taffy Entertainment, while each original character noted is an original work of codelyokofan92 on deviantART.**  
**

* * *

**Chapter 6**

Hearing the sound of laughing already coming from inside the Stern household, Adele gave a small knock on the door to let the others know of their arrival. But before she could knock again, the door sprang open and out leaped Yumiko chasing down Tristan, who had her personal diary in hand.

"Tristan!" she shouted. "Give me back my diary! No one is allowed to read it but me alone!"

Now normally it would be a younger sibling wanting to peek into the life of the older sibling, but without hesitation, Tristan held her diary behind his back and said, "Is that so? Well if that's the case, come and get it from me then!"

Mocking her shorter height, Tristan held her journal of thoughts high out of her reach, but had not noticed a familiar figure in the form of Jace, jumping in the air to swipe the book out of his hands and hand the private book back to Yumiko.

"Wha?" Tristan questioned with slight disappointment. "Aww come on, I was that close to finding out who this mystery guy is she's crushing on!"

Suddenly, hearing this revealing information, Yumiko turned a dark shade of red and said, "Tristan! That's none of your business! In fact, it's nobody's business but mine!"

"Ha, gotcha!" replied Tristan running into the house achieving a victory even without the diary.

Trying to break the silence that loomed, Jace asked Yumiko, "Um, can we come in?"

"Uh sure," she said still letting embarrassment show. "Come on in. Just take your shoes off before stepping in."

As Jace and Adele did as they were told, and walked into the family room, Adele told Jace she would join up with the others after a little "girl talk" with Yumiko. Letting her go to comfort her, Jace walked in to join the fun already in progress, which consisted of a game of Sour Apples to Apples.

"Hey guys," said Jace making his entrance.

"Hey Jace," said Kevin trying to play the role as the host of the party. "You're just in time for a game of Sour Apples to Apples. Grab five of the cards and I'll explain how it works."

"Um, okay," he replied doing so.

After hearing the twisted version of the classic game, each began to work on the first word chosen by Carine, which was "Evil." Jace decide to lay down the card "Tax collectors," which ended up winning him a green card which was needed to win the game, while Oliver was forced to spin the Apple of Fate, requiring him to remain silent for the next round.

Everybody continued to play for about six rounds until the final green card was awarded to Kevin, thereby giving him victory, and the right to rub his cards in everyone's faces.

"Well, that was fun," replied Maya reflecting on the cards she earned, curious as to if they fit her personality.

As Yumiko and Adele finally came down the stairs, everyone's attention was called when Kevin, Tristan, and Yumiko's father Ulrich stepped in to say, "Hey kids, the grill is all fired up, so feel free to come on out and dig into the good food available."

As expected, Oliver rushed out of the room prepared to swipe all the food available, but was too late, as the Stern's mother Yumi began also partaking of the food herself. Without hesitation, the blonde boy quickly assembled a burger and went straight to work eating.

Looking at the interesting sight in front of her, Mrs. Stern said whispered in her husband's ear, "Like father, like son, don't you think?"

"No doubt about it, he's definitely his father's child," replied Mr. Stern preparing to eat himself.

In a more calm fashion, everyone else began to partake of the great spread of food prepared by the parents, which gave Jace a chance to introduce himself to Mr. and Mrs. Stern.

"Nice to meet you both," he said to them. "Thanks for having us all over."

"Don't mention it," said Mr. Stern. "Seeing you guys altogether reminds me so much of when my wife and I were students at Kadic with each of their parents."

Mrs. Stern nodded her head and added, "Of course, things tended to be a little smaller in the way of how many people actually got together."

"Sounds like a fun time," said Jace as he continued to enjoy the food prepared. "If it's okay to ask, what was life like at Kadic for you all as a group? Was it pretty fun, or was it as students there?"

Suddenly, a weird silence loomed over the party, causing the children to look at each other as if to say something didn't feel right with the way both Mr. and Mrs. Stern were not responding as quickly.

"It..." began Mrs. Stern. "It was pretty fun, but it wasn't all fun and games. We definitely had our share of battles in classes and even dealing with people others we didn't get along with."

Hearing her oddly timed answer, Jace simply left the subject closed saying, "Sounds like what we've got going now, only with more dozing off in class for some, namely Oliver."

Everyone suddenly began to laugh as Oliver accidentally had soda coming out of his nose after being caught off guard by Jace's words about his sleeping in Science class. After catching his breath, Oliver replied saying, "Aww, come on, it's too torturous dealing with Mrs. Lindbergh daily. A guy's gotta make it through somehow."

"Aww, come on," parroted Jace. "It's not all that bad." Changing his direction of view over towards Adele, he continued by saying (likely as a double-entente), "Actually, I find Science to be one of my favorite subjects during the school day."

At that moment, something inside Adele caused the youngest of the group to start blushing a small shade of pink, as she agreed with Jace saying, "I like it too. It's definitely a fun class to start the day off on."

Suddenly, Jace began to feel slightly different as his cheeks now started to heat up from hearing Adele's words. Unknown to both of them, everyone could see the awkward moment taking shape and the kids began to giggle uncontrollably while the Mrs. Stern whispered into her husband's ear, "Wow, looks like you're never too young to experience romance. Even in a small form."

"Yumi," said Mr. Stern trying to keep quiet about the situation. "Don't make them feel even more awkward."

That note of discretion became slightly short-lived as Maya suddenly burst in saying, "You two feeling okay?"

Snapping out of another weird trance, both quickly recovered and stammered saying in unison, "Huh? Oh yeah, I'm okay."

About ready to burst out in laughter, Oliver and Tristan covered their faces to hide their expressions, but were quickly silenced by Carine and Yumiko with a sudden pull on their ears.

As that took place, both suddenly began to have thoughts racing through their heads, _What's wrong with me? Why is it that when he stares at me, I can't help but smile or I feel so nervous? Why do I feel both happy and confused at the same time when she smiles at me?_

Both continued to let these thoughts compel them as everyone continued to enjoy dinner together, questions constantly contemplating if this feeling they both had right now, was either infatuation that would only last for the night, or maybe a sign from the Lord above that something bigger was about to take shape.


	7. Chapter 7

Note: I do not own Code Lyoko, nor any of it's characters, scenarios or locations. I also do not own any of the original characters noted in this story (all except two in Jace Stevens and Katie Michaels). Code Lyoko appears courtesy of Moonscoop Productions and Taffy Entertainment, while each original character noted is an original work of codelyokofan92 on deviantART.

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**Chapter 7**

After about an hour enjoying the good food prepared by the Stern family, everybody decided now was the time to enjoy a great back to back run of flicks as a group. Both Mr. and Mrs. Stern also thought they would join them as well, mainly to keep things in check with some of the couples there and make sure the movies were age appropriate.

But before the movies began to play, a knock came from the door, and Kevin got up to answer it, revealing a familiar looking Asian girl that he remembered sitting with Oliver earlier that day.

"Um, hi," she said rather quietly. "Um, is this the Stern home?"

Realizing who she was, Kevin confirmed her assumption and let her in to welcome her to the festivities.

"Hey Katie!" said Oliver from across the room. "Glad you could make it. Did you have trouble finding the home?"

"No not at all," she replied giving Odd a friendly hug. "It definitely helped that their last name was printed on the mailbox."

Ready with his hand on the DVD player, Tristan said, "Well, you're just in time Katie, we were just about to get started enjoying a couple of movies."

"Oh, how fun," said Katie. "What were you planning to watch tonight?"

Choosing the answer her question, Jace replied saying, "Well, I decided to choose a double-header of action and romantic-comedy with _Rush Hour 3_ and _Along Came Polly._

"Ooh, those sound like fun," she said finally becoming more comfortable with everyone around her.

"You bet!" said Oliver sitting a little closer to her. "Oh, and even better, you'll like _Rush Hour 3_ because there's some good kung-fu fighting in it too. I mainly say that because I remember you mentioning liking kung-fu."

Flattered he remembered her studying kung-fu, Katie smiled and said, "Now I think I might like it even more."

Exhibiting some phony impatience, Tristan hollered, "Um, if you two don't mind, can we get the movies started now?" Everyone quickly shut up at that moment, as Tristan started up the first of the two movies.

As the opening sequence began, Jace looked moved a little closer to Adele and whispered to her, "Funny enough, I had thought the movie was supposed to be another one of those dumb sequels to a good original movie, but I definitely got proven wrong after watching it. I think you'll enjoy it too."

"That's good," she replied back, unaware of the fact she began to move a little closer to Jace. "I always hate when movies have sequels come out that only prove to make the original better by a lot."

Agreeing with her, Jace allowed her and the others to enjoy the movie without giving away spoilers. However, as the movie got more intense and got to a scene that featured some scenes from a Burlesque dance club, Jace quickly requested they fast-forward through the risqué content to keep things in good taste.

Seeing this act by Jace, Mr. and Mrs. Stern saw this as a sincere concern for keeping things in order and appreciated his act of maturity on the kids' behalf. While the others moaned at the idea of missing what they thought was "something hot and juicy," Mr. and Mrs. Stern followed through with the act and let the movie finish after skipping past the questionable scenes.

It was at this moment that Adele's heart began pounding a little harder as she suddenly became overcome with a feeling of admiration for Jace's sense of wanting to keep the party fun and enjoyable, and without thinking she whispered to Jace as they restart the movie, "You know, that was pretty cool of you to do that."

Hearing her words, the young ascot-cap wearing boy looked at her and said nervously, "Well, um... I figured that um... you know... while we're here watching the movie with Tristan, Yumiko, and Kevin's parents watching too, we might want to... um... keep things more respectful."

Upon hearing his response, Adele could hear the nervousness in Jace's voice, a sign that he was trying to keep his cool with her, and she let out a slight giggle.

"What's so funny?" he asked perplexed by her laughter.

"Nothing," she replied rather coy. "I just find it funny when you sound like you don't know what to say."

Suddenly, once she realized what she was saying to him, Adele retreated into her mind and thought, _What? What am I saying? When did I start suddenly saying the first thing that comes to mind? He must think I sound like a nerd now._

But rather than be puzzled by her response, Jace showed a smile and said playfully, "Well, I find it kinda funny and cute, when you look like you're daydreaming like you were just a minute ago."

Feeling embarrassed that she her mind drifted like it did, the young girl lightened up and said, "You got me there. Looks like we both have our embarrassing moments huh?"

"Agreed," he replied.

As the movie drew closer to it's end and the final battle neared it's conclusion, Jace began to notice his hand slowly moving closer towards Adele's lonely hand, and without really realizing that it was happening, the boy allowed his hand to gently take a hold of hers, sending Adele's heart off the deep end.

_Oh my, it's actually happening, _she thought as she could now feel the texture of his hand touching against her own. _His hand is so warm and soft. Should I pull away? No way, you know you don't want to. But maybe things are going to fast. What do I do?_

Finally putting thought aside, Adele allowed herself to let the feeling of Jace's hand in hers be taken as a good thing, and locked her hand around his to let him know she was okay with it.

Suddenly newfound emotions began to stir inside the two teens as they now were experiencing a new way of getting to know each other. While both were not quite sure what was these new emotions were that they were feeling inside, all the two could think about was the warm comfort of feeling the other's hand in their own, and were not prepared to let it end.

But before both could revel too much into this new rush they were feeling, the movie had come to an end, giving way to more laughing than before with the blooper reel.

As the film played it's final scenes, Adele and Jace looked at each other with a darker blush showing on their faces, that only was heightened more when Yumiko turned the lights on. Everyone in the room, including Mr. and Mrs. Stern couldn't help but snicker and laugh under their breath, seeing how cute both of them looked sharing such an intimate moment for kids so young.

"It's just like I said," said Mrs. Stern. "You're never too young."


	8. Chapter 8

Note: I do not own Code Lyoko, nor any of it's characters, scenarios or locations. I also do not own any of the original characters noted in this story (all except two in Jace Stevens and Katie Michaels). Code Lyoko appears courtesy of Moonscoop Productions and Taffy Entertainment, while each original character noted is an original work of codelyokofan92 on deviantART.

* * *

**Chapter 8**

"Alright everybody, intermission time!" proclaimed Kevin. "Anybody wants to use the restroom or get something to eat, better do so now so we can get the second movie started."

With those relieving words everybody slowly got up to take a needed break, with Oliver and Katie choosing to go and get something to eat, Yumiko and Tristan visiting the restroom, and the others remaining in the family room stretching and getting set to enjoy the second movie of the double feature.

After a quick stretch, Jace got up and said to Adele, "Um... I'm gonna... go get something to drink. You want me to get you anything?"

"Oh, um... nothing for me," she replied now appearing a little more flustered than before. "Um... mind if I join you in the kitchen?"

Caught a little off guard by her request, Jace said in an equally flustered manner, "Sure! I mean... um... if you want."

As he reached for the sink handle to fill his glass of water, the young teen said, "Wasn't that a good movie? I definitely loved the action and drama of the sword battle."

"It was actually pretty good," said Adele with sincerity. "I wish I could remember more of the ending though."

"Oh really?" he asked. "Was it more of a boring ending?"

Twirling her fingers round and round, Adele said, "No it wasn't that. I guess kinda had other things on my mind at the time."

"What do you mean by that?" Jace asked slightly confused. Just then, the boy suddenly had an insight and said in a slightly broken fashion, "Oh... y-you mean... when we were..."

Adele simply nodded her head acknowledging his thought as correct. Then in one foul swoop, they both began to understand more about that feeling they were having both during dinner and during the end of the movie. Was it in fact a true connection developing between both of them?

Before anything more could be said to revel in the moment longer, Yumiko ran in the room and said, "Time for the second movie you two! Come on out before Oliver and Katie steal your guys' spot." Noticing what appeared to be a potentially romantic moment taking place, the youngest of the Stern children said, "Oops, um... I hope I didn't interrupt something."

"Oh, uh... no, it's okay," said Adele trying to regain her composure. "We'll be there in a minute."

Preparing to leave the room, Adele turned around and headed for the family room, when Jace opened his mouth and said almost instinctively, "Um... Adele..."

"Yeah?" she replied turning to him. "What's up?"

"Um..." he stammered. "It's nothing, I'll tell you later."

Feeling slightly confused, Adele wondered what could Jace was planning to say to her that couldn't be said then and there. But the girl quickly got over it as both returned back to their spot to prepare for the second movie.

Knowing what type of content _Along Came Polly_ would have featured in it, Jace warned everyone including Mr. and Mrs. Stern once again, and asked if they would keep charge of the remote during the movie. Both agreed to do so, having already seen the movie before, thereby knowing what to expect.

Finally, without any further waiting, Mr. Stern started up the movie and everyone became caught up with immediate laughter watching Ben Stiller's comedic friend fall on the dance floor. The scene even proved too much for Tristan to resist rolling around on the floor hearing the "thud" of the fall.

"Sounds like somebody here likes to laugh at falls a little too much," said Mrs. Stern amazed at the spectacle of her son laughing uncontrollably.

After Tristan finally calmed down, everyone became more enthralled at the movie's story of Ben Stiller's journey to find love and build a new relationship.

It was at that moment dejâ-vü took place once more, and Jace decided to try and initiate a romantic moment with Adele once again. Only this time, instead of simply taking hold of her hand, he slowly began to lift his arm to place around her. While he knew what he was doing was 100% cliché, the boy didn't appear as if he cared, and upon feeling the softness of her red sweater covering her shoulder, Jace's nerves began to hit an all-time high.

On the other side, feeling the gentle touch of Jace's hand grazing her shoulder, Adele also felt a weird combination of both ecstasy and nervousness, knowing that for the first time, a boy had begun to show genuine interest in her. And while she still felt slightly uncertain about these feelings developing inside of her, the blonde girl allowed herself to give in once again and rested her head of Jace's shoulder for comfort, remaining that way for the rest of the movie.

Looking on at the moment unfolding across the room, as well as the sight of Kevin holding Maya in his arms and placing a kiss on her forehead, Oliver felt the time was now to try and make a move with Katie. But before he could even attempt to do so, the new girl reached for his hand and looked in his eyes with a smile on her face that seemed more for sure rather than nervous. Smiling back at her, the youngest Della Robbia child gently wrapped his hand over hers and the two continued to watch the romance unfold between Jennifer Anniston and Ben Stiller.

Amazed at the sight of two potential new couples taking shape, and watching their son enjoy the movie with Maya, Mr. and Mrs. Stern couldn't help but feel a shot of nostalgia hit them reflecting back to when they first professed their love for each other a few days after the evil virus known as XANA was destroyed.

From the corner of his eye, Jace glanced over at the Stern parents and noticed an odd looking charm hanging from Mrs. Stern's neck, that appeared to bear an eye-shaped symbol. Not wanting to make anymore movement to stir Adele from the state of peace she was in, he didn't think any further on the charm, and continued to watch the movie with the blonde girl resting on his arm, hand cupped with his.

And almost like it was clockwork, the movie had come to an end, which stirred everyone who may have been sleeping awake.

As the lights came back on again, Jace looked down at Adele sleeping peacefully and said in a whisper, "Hey Adele, time to wake up. The movie's over."

"Mm-mm, just five more minutes," she said wanting to continue resting on his shoulder. But alas, sleep would elude her temporarily as Jace gently lifted her head to wake her up to get ready to head home.

After collecting all their things, and cleaning up the family room the best they could, everyone prepared to bid the Stern family farewell, but not before providing a big thank you for allowing them to have their party night at their home.

"You're more than welcome," said Mr. Stern holding Mrs. Stern close. "You kids remind us so much of when we were your age and enjoyed hanging out together a lot."

"We're just glad to hear you enjoyed yourselves," added Mrs. Stern.

And so, with one final note of gratitude, everyone but their own children headed on their way to their respective homes.

Noticing that she was not walking with them, Adele turned around to ask her sister if she was coming with them, only to see her sharing a small makeout session with Kevin, and quickly disregarded her question.

"It's probably best we just leave them alone," said Jace trying to exercise discretion. "Come on Adele, I'll walk you home."

Suddenly, it began to happen again, Adele's and Jace's hearts both began fluttering uncontrollably, which would only increase as he took hold of her hand once more to keep her close from the dangers of the night.

Finally, after about nearly nine blocks of walking, the two teens arrived at the Belpois home, which appeared to still have the lights on in anticipation of Maya and Adele's return.

As they walked up the steps to her door, Jace felt as if there was a voice inside of him telling him to take a chance and perhaps ask Adele out for lunch together, just her and him. Unbeknownst to her, this was the exact thought Jace had in mind when they were back at the Stern home and were in the kitchen alone. If ever there were a time to try and ask her, now was as perfect a time as any.

Trying not to simply say good night right off the bat, the boy said, "Sure was a fun night, huh?"

"It was," she replied smiling. "Definitely a great way to start the weekend, especially after all the work we had to do in classes."

"You said it," he added reflecting on the homework he had yet to start on.

It was at that moment after a three second pause that Adele recalled Jace's cut-off statement in the Stern's kitchen and asked, "By the way, you mentioned telling me something later when we were at Yumiko's place; what was it you wanted to say?"

Now was the moment of truth. Would he do it? Would he have the courage to ask her out, even though he feared she would maybe say no?

"Oh yeah, that's right," he said hesitantly. "Well... I was wondering... if... if maybe you would... like to um... perhaps... go out for a bite to eat sometime? Maybe, sometime in the next week?"

Adele was almost tempted to pinch herself to see if she was in fact dreaming. For the very first time, a boy had asked her out on a date, a sign that she was in fact being seen as someone special in the eyes of a boy she might like.

Trying to not become overwhelmed with emotion, Adele answered saying, "Um... well I... I'd uh... yeah, sure... I'd love to."

With a smile appearing on his face in a bigger fashion, Jace said, "Great! Sounds like a plan. How about sometime next weekend, say around 3PM at Le Pizza Magnifique?"

"That sounds great," she said still trying to accept the fact that what was happening was real. "That's one of my favorite places."

"Awesome!" he replied. Then came a set of words Adele, and even Jace never would have expected they'd hear said, "It's a date."

With plans set in place, both the kids' nerves finally began to disappear and reveled in the fact that they would soon experience a new moment together that would eclipse what had happened earlier that night, the first date.

Finally, after getting her phone number and exchanging his number with her, Jace prepared to bid Adele good night, but not before placing a gentle kiss on her soft cheek.

"See you Monday," he said as he began to walk backwards down the steps of her home.

"See you then, and get home safely," replied Adele as she slowly closed her front door. It wasn't until the door clicked shut, that the young blonde teen leaned against her front door and slowly moved downward to sit on the floor, letting out a sigh of sweet bliss, knowing that she not only just got asked out on a date, but even received a kiss from Jace at the same time.

Feeling her phone vibrate, Adele noticed a text come in that she would leave on her phone screen for the remainder of the night as she slept, _"Had a great time with you tonight Adele. Am excited to get to know you better. See you on Monday, will save you a seat... :)"_

As she lay in bed, the girl looked up to Heaven above and simply said, "Thank you Father. Thank you," and she finally let the even sweeter bliss of sleep claim her in it's warm embrace, knowing that this was only just the beginning of something special.


	9. Chapter 9

Note: I do not own Code Lyoko, nor any of it's characters, scenarios or locations. I also do not own any of the original characters noted in this story (all except one in Jace Stevens). Code Lyoko appears courtesy of Moonscoop Productions and Taffy Entertainment, while each original character noted is an original work of codelyokofan92 on deviantART.

* * *

**Chapter 9**

Although it had only been a few days since Jace had asked her out on a lunch date, Adele continued to still have butterflies in her stomach from the sheer thought of her and Jace together, just the two of them, enjoying each other's company and getting to know each other better.

As Aelita called down her daughters to breakfast, Maya rushed down like the wind on a stormy day, but the youngest of the Belpois daughters slowly took her time getting downstairs. It wasn't until she turned the corner that Maya and their mother Aelita noticed Adele appearing to be humming a song and gliding across the floor with a look of happiness on her face, something that didn't appear as often that previous week.

"And just what are we so happy about today, huh? said Maya trying to figure out what was up with her sister.

"Nothing," she said in a rather coy voice. "Can't a girl just hum her favorite worship song and appreciate all that God has given us in life without it being a big deal?"

At that moment, Maya glanced over the shoulder of Adele spying on her text message log, noticing that there was a text from Jace that appeared to be from the night of the party at the Stern home saying he would "save her a seat."

Upon seeing this text, Maya walked over to her mother and whispered something into her ear that brought a mixture of both parental concern and excitement for her youngest daughter, "I'd never thought I'd see the day. Adele got asked out by Jace Stevens, that new boy who our group just met last week."

"What? Really?" said her mother. "When did this happen?"

"Apparently the night of the party at the Stern home," she replied. "I kinda overheard her talking to Yumiko when I got home later talking about going to get pizza with him this weekend."

Trying not to get too overexcited to give away that she knew what was happening, Mrs. Belpois simply shed a tear of happiness for her daughter and said to herself, "I don't believe it. My baby is finally going out on her first date."

But rather than blurt out that she knew what was coming later this weekend, Aelita chose to keep this information private until Adele was ready to tell her.

As Maya sat back down to eat, the pink haired sibling asked her sister, "So sis, what do you think of that new kid Jace? He seems pretty cool, huh?"

Caught off guard by her statement, Adele lost control and dropped her spoon within her cereal saying, "W-What? Oh yeah, he's pretty cool. I didn't actually realize how much he and I have in common."

"Oh really?" asked her mother overhearing her daughters' conversation. "Like what exactly?"

"Um..." she began recounting their interests. "Well he likes to read good romantic poetry like me, especially the more sappier kind. And he also likes to study computers like me, but he usually asks me for advice on specific systems. And... oh yeah, he's a Christian too like us. In fact, he likes to play guitar and sings worship songs from time to time."

"Hmm, sounds like you know quite a bit about him already," said her mother trying to dig deeper. "Has he told you anything more about himself? Maybe even about his family or his upbringing?"

Contemplating her mother's question, Adele finally said, "From what I remember, his parents have been together for about 30 years, and raised him into his faith in Jesus. He gets a lot of his advice for life from them both. He seems to love them both a lot like I love you and daddy."

"Well then," said her mother, "Why don't you invite him over to the house sometime?"

Caught off guard once again, Adele said, "What? What did you say?"

"Yeah, it would be a fun time for you both," replied her mother. "You could hang out here, maybe enjoy a movie or play games together, and maybe your father and I could get to know him too."

Leaning over to whisper in her sister's ear, Maya said, "Congrats sis, looks like you've stirred up mom's curiosity to get to know your potential boyfriend, just like I did when I first got to know Kevin."

"W-What? Who said anything about Jace being my boyfriend?" said Adele looking at her sister rather shocked."

"Adele," Maya replied. "Did you really think you could hide your big plans for this weekend from me, your own sister?"

Looking rather guilty, the youngest of the two siblings finally came out and explained about her date planned for the weekend with Jace. She also mentioned that Jace had told his parents and both gave their consent to take her out, and that he wanted to ask both her mother and father if it would be okay.

Normally, many teenagers would have this set as a ploy to butter up their parents to drop the subject, but in this case Adele was speaking the truth, and seeing her sincerity when she said it, Aelita said to Adele, "Okay then. How about this, tell him that it's okay with your father and I, if he agrees to come and pick you up here at the house. This way, your father and I can find out more about him and your plans for the afternoon and where you'll be."

Feeling like she was getting the third degree, Adele reluctantly agreed to her mother's terms , but then returned to smiling as she prepared to text Jace to inform him of the arrangement for their date.

As he sit back in his chair, Jace continued to read a book of collective poetry works by Edgar Allen Poe, designed to be interpreted easier by a junior high student. However, before he could finish _The Raven_, the young boy's phone went off with a loud chorus of his favorite worship song _I Can Only Imagine._

Opening the message sent by Adele, the following text appeared on his phone, _"Mom said it was okay for our date. Mind picking me up though at my place? Might take a little while to get ready. Thanks much! See you at class in a little while... ;)"_

Thinking further about the text she just sent, Jace had asked his mom, "Hey mom, do you think it's a problem if I went to pick up Adele at her place, instead of meeting her at the pizzeria?"

Hearing his specific question, Jace's mother Victoria picked up on a potential reason why Adele may have made this request, "No, it's not a problem. In fact, this may be a message from her parents saying they want to get to you know you better in person."

"Really?" he asked now feeling slightly worried. "How are you so sure?"

"Well, because my parents did the exact same thing with me when I first dated your father in high school," she said hit with her own shot of nostalgia.

Walking down from his home office, Jace's father Richard could overhear his wife's remark and quickly followed by saying, "Boy, how could I forget. It's definitely something I'll never forget."

"Why, what happened dad?" replied Jace growing more curious.

"Well," he began. "I ended up meeting at your mother's home the night of a big movie premiere. But as soon as I opened the door, her father was standing there as if he was just waiting for me to arrive. Fortunately your mother was there to create a gap between us both, or else that stare of his may have did me in.

"But it wasn't until I was alone with her mom and dad both that I saw they were both just like any other parents... they were concerned about their daughter and only wanted what was best for her, which was to have a good time and for us to get to know each other in a safe and enjoyable manner."

Sitting down to join Jace, Mr. Stevens placed his hand on his son's shoulder and said, "And I'm sure that's exactly what the Belpois's have in mind for Adele. They just want to get to know you, and see that you're someone they can trust to enjoy a good time with their daughter."

Now looking even more uneasy, Jace had wondered if this would turn out like one of those police interrogation type of visits with the parents, where he would be drilled with questions about his life and hit with that parental glare his friends would joke about when they went on dates. Could he take it?

"Don't worry sweetheart," said his mother keeping positivity in the situation. "From the little bit you've told me about her family, I'm sure they're wonderful people. You've got nothing to fear."

Pushing out the thoughts he just had now, Jace agreed with his mother and replied back to Adele's text saying, _"Sounds good. It's gonna be a lot of fun. :) Will see you in a little while. Will hold your seat... ;)"_

After pushing Enter to send his text, and downing his cup of green tea, Jace hustled out his front door, but not before hearing a phrase he hadn't heard in years since attending his previous school... "Jace sweetie, aren't you forgetting something?"

"Oh crud," he muttered to himself, remembering his phone was left on the counter. Almost instinctively, the young boy saw his mother hurl his phone into the air, and he leapt to his feet to catch it with relative ease.

"Thanks mom!" he shouted back to her. "You both seem to think of everything."

Hearing his loving remark, Victoria stood in the arms of her one love, Jace's father, and the two smiled watching her son run off to head to school with only one thing to say, "They grow up so fast..."


	10. Chapter 10

Note: I do not own Code Lyoko, nor any of it's characters, scenarios or locations. I also do not own any of the original characters noted in this story (all except one in Jace Stevens). Code Lyoko appears courtesy of Moonscoop Productions and Taffy Entertainment, while each original character noted is an original work of codelyokofan92 on deviantART.

* * *

**Chapter 10**

At last, that special day had finally arrived; the day of the big lunch date for Adele and Jace.

Before leaving his house, the young newcomer to the group said a quick prayer to God asking for their date to go smoothly and for her and him to not feel nervous about spending time together one on one. He even took the opportunity to snatch a drop of his father's favorite cologne and apply it to his face, hoping that it would bring a little luck for them both.

But that wasn't the only thing snatched from his house before he left, as the young boy also felt it in his heart to swipe a single red rose from the kitchen table bouquet his mother received from his father as a romantic gesture, to give to Adele as his own way of saying, _I'm excited to get to know you._

With a rose in hand and the sun shining brightly overhead, Jace walked down the main street leading towards the Belpois family home wondering what he and Adele could talk about when they met up and while they enjoyed dinner.

It was at that moment that Jace began to fear the worst, _What if I don't have anything interesting to talk about? Oh man, what if I just suddenly blank while we're hanging out and I start saying nonsense? _But it wasn't until he rounded the corner to reach her doorstep that Jace remembered some good words of advice from Kevin about talking to a girl you care about... _"If you find yourself blanking out, think of something that you both care about a lot, and strike a conversation that way."_

Unfortunately Jace couldn't seem to think of anything right off the bat, but maybe that would change as the date progressed. The only one thing the young boy could now think of as he stepped onto Adele's porch was, "Looks like it's time to meet the family."

* * *

"Yumiko, are you sure I need to have this much makeup?," asked Adele feeling the powderpuff brush her cheeks. "I mean, it is just a lunch date after all."

"Come on sis," said Maya holding a tube of lightly colored pink lip gloss in hand. "This is a big day for you. My little sister is finally going out on her first date. This is something every big sister dreams of happening."

"And besides," added Yumiko. "You want to look cute for Jace and show him how beautiful you are."

Blushing at the very thought of Jace seeing her in such a way, Adele couldn't help but feel her heart practically jump out her chest. And yet, she did feel pretty excited that this would finally be a sign of her possibly finding a boy she actually liked who also felt the same way about her.

But it wasn't until Maya finished applying her lip gloss that the youngest of the Belpois children began to also have fears of her own, and felt comfortable to ask her sister, "Maya, were you at all scared on your first date with Kevin?"

"Me?" she asked almost inquisitively. "You bet I was. The whole time we were hanging out, I practically had my heart in my throat and felt like I was gonna blank, not saying anything at all. In fact, I did actually stay silent for about 30 seconds before finally talking to him about my walk with Christ."

"Really?" asked Adele. "But you always seem so open and comfortable talking with him about everything."

Placing her hands on her sister's shoulders, Maya looked at Adele face to face and said, "Listen sis, you're not always gonna know what to say right away on a first date. It's not like a play where you memorize lines and then you say them when it's your turn to speak.

"But what makes it better than a play, is you don't have to talk about something you don't want to talk about. You both get to talk about whatever you want, and through it all, you're getting to know each other better."

Feeling a little more at ease, Adele began to catch her breath lost from her nervousness, but became even more peaceful hearing some important words from her sister, "Worst case scenario, if you find you can't say anything at all, think of something that you both care about a lot, and create a conversation there."

But before the young girl could think of anything in particular, the doorbell rang twice and the moment of truth had arrived.

* * *

Opening the front door of the home, Mr. Belpois saw that Jace was standing on the porch and welcomed him in with a warm expression.

"It's a pleasure to meet both of you," said Jace as he introduced himself to Adele's mother and father.

"The pleasure is all ours," said Mrs. Belpois shaking the boy's hand. "This is my husband and Adele's father Jeremie, and I'm Aelita her mother."

With introductions now out of the way, the three talked for about 10 minutes while Adele was still getting ready. During the time, Jace had a chance to tell more about himself and about his journey to Kadic Academy, and even got to talk more about his journey with Jesus, which surprised both Mr. and Mrs. Belpois hearing about his volunteering he had done with his parents for homeless shelters.

But it wasn't all tea-party chatting. Mr. Belpois then asked Jace, "So, what exactly are your plans for the afternoon with Adele? Just want to make sure."

Feeling his nerves being slightly put to the test, Jace finally took a deep breath neither Mr. or Mrs. Belpois could hear and mentioned a plan to enjoy some pizza at the nearby pizzeria and maybe even read some poetry together from some of his favorite poets.

With a greater sense of comfort hearing his plans for the day and the time they would return home, Mr. Belpois wished both of them a good time and not to be back too late.

Running down the stairs, Adele stood behind Jace and said, "Hey Jace, you ready to go?"

"You bet," he replied now getting up from the reclining chair. "I was just talking with your parents about our plans for the afternoon ahe..." The boy couldn't even finish his last word now having gotten caught up in how cute Adele looked with her glamoured appearance courtesy of her sister and Yumiko.

Feeling his heartbeat rapidly increase, Jace tried to utter out a compliment on her appearance, but could only manage the words, "So... um... shall we head on out?"

Seeing his nervousness starting to show on his face, Maya whispered to Yumiko, "Yep, no doubt about it, he thinks she looks beautiful."

"Sounds good," Adele replied as Jace opened the front door for her like a gentleman and slipped the rose behind his back to give her later.

"Pleasure to have met you both Mr. and Mrs. Belpois," Jace said as they stepped out onto the porch. "We'll be home a little later."

Standing in the entryway, both Adele's and Maya's parents, as well as Yumiko and Maya looked out at the two potential young lovebirds and said, "Have fun you two!"

As the two turned the corner and made their way for the pizzeria about a half mile away, Jace felt his nerves begin to spike up slightly as he moved the rose from behind his back and prepared to reveal it to Adele. Holding it for her to see, the young boy said, "Oh, I almost forgot, this is for you,"

Flattered at such a romantic gesture, Adele reached out for the rose and said, "Wow, it's so beautiful. I love roses so much. Thank you Jace."

Taking a sniff of the great fragrance of the symbolic flower, Adele inserted the rose in her small purse and took hold of Jace's hand as they began to make their way once more for the restaurant.

Suddenly, without any inclination that he was doing so Jace let the following words pass from his lips, "Well...um... that rose isn't the only thing here that looks beautiful."

At that moment, Jace retreated into his head and thought, _What?! What the heck Jace? Did you actually just say that? That was way too strong for just a first date and you know it._

Hearing his words so sincere, the young girl saw her thoughts become reality at the sound of Jace calling her beautiful and began to blush profusely as she uttered with a smile on her face, "Oh... um... thank you. You um... you look, pretty nice yourself."

Now it was Jace's turn to turn a darker shade of red hearing Adele say those words to him, while the youngest of the Belpois family began to think maybe her words were too strong as well and maybe that could've waited for another date.

Fortunately, with the feeling of both their hands locked in each other's and the fact that they both were now getting a chance to hang out together alone, both didn't let themselves remain too wrapped up in constant thought and finally allowed themselves to enjoy the peaceful walk together as they made their way to Le Pizza Magnifique.


	11. Chapter 11

Note: I do not own Code Lyoko, nor any of it's characters, scenarios or locations. I also do not own any of the original characters noted in this story (all except one in Jace Stevens). Code Lyoko appears courtesy of Moonscoop Productions and Taffy Entertainment, while each original character noted is an original work of codelyokofan92 on deviantART.

* * *

**Chapter 11**

After a nearly nine block walk through the main section of the city, Jace and Adele finally arrived at the famed pizzeria known by many as _Le Pizza Magnifique_.

At first sight, the place looked more so like a comfy bistro restaurant, but upon walking in, the place was far bigger inside with a special wood fire oven in eye sight near the register, and a cozy corner set aside for couples coming to enjoy an afternoon lunch.

Noticing some of the great combinations they had available for pizza, Jace suggested they try the diverse combination of pepperoni, prosciutto, and green bell peppers. Upon hearing his suggestion, Adele's curiosity of the flavor was peaked and agreed to the idea.

However, the pizza proved the more easier decision to make, as the two young lovebirds now were faced with a more difficult scenario... talking with each other until the pizza came.

Taking a seat in the section normally sat at by couples, Jace and Adele glanced out at the bright sun light beaming down on the busy street visible from the window. It was at this moment Jace finally initiated conversation saying, "We were lucky to be able to have some sun out today, I had heard it was gonna rain all weekend."

"Really?" asked Adele. "I heard it would, but didn't think so after waking up this morning."

"Right?" he replied affirming her assumption. "Just curious, what do you prefer, rainy days or snow days?"

Giving the question some quick thought, Adele couldn't help but say excitedly, "Definitely snow days."

"Let me guess," Jace said predicting why she said so. "No school for the day?"

Leaning her head to the side, almost as if she was embarrassed to say why, Adele finally said, "Well... I guess it's because snow days always seem so much more peaceful. Of course there's no school, but there's also the fact that when you look outside and see all the white around, and hear the silence in the air... well... I kinda feel like that's God's way of showing Himself to us."

"You definitely have a point," replied the young boy holding his cross necklace in his hand. "It's definitely something you don't see everyday, and when it comes, you can't help but be overly excited at the fact that it even has come down."

"Exactly!" said Adele seeing that Jace was in the same mindset as she was. "You'll find it funny, I actually tried writing a poem about a snow day when I was younger, but I didn't do it too well."

His curiosity now peaked, Jace asked, "Oh really? If you don't mind my asking, what did it sound like?"

Feeling that sense of embarrassment again, Adele quickly shook her head in denial saying, "It's too silly. You'd just laugh."

"Oh come on," said Jace with added persistence. "I promise I won't laugh at all." Striking up an idea, Jace added, "Tell you what, if you tell me yours, I'll tell you about a poem I wrote about the rain when I was in fourth grade."

With embarrassment turning to temptation, Adele reluctantly agreed and recited her poem for him, _"White flakes, cold shakes, see the snow fall; feel the chill, feel the thrill, go have a ball."_

Seeing how well she could rhyme in her poem, even in the sixth grade Jace couldn't help but crack a smile and say, "Wow, you definitely could write a lot better at a younger age than me."

"Well, let's just see," she challenged. "Let's hear yours."

Clearing his throat jokingly, Jace took the old poem from his poetry book and read, _"Rain oh ugly rain, how I don't like you, please go away now, we want the sun back, let us go and play."_

Smiling as he finished, Adele couldn't help but giggle slightly at how cute Jace's fourth grade words sounded. Seeing his poetry book in hand she said, "Aww, you sound like you didn't like the rain either."

"Not so much," he said closing his book. "Snow days always seem more fun, you know, aside from getting out of school. There's more fun things to do, whether it's a snowball fight, sledding, or even just laying back and trying to catch snowflakes in your mouth. It's kinda like you said, it's just so much more peaceful when it's around."

Hearing his reaffirmation of her earlier statement, Adele said, "Well then, looks like we'll just have to be patient and see if it comes this winter."

"Looks like it," he said agreeing with her. "If it does though... maybe we could... um... enjoy it together. Maybe even catch a few flakes when they're falling."

Blushing at the idea of both of them laying back in the snow and trying to catch the falling flakes like in her poem, Adele said, "Um... yeah... that would be fun. I'd like that."

Turning a slightly crimson shade himself, the two young lovers slowly let their hands draw closer together, until Jace's finally caressed the top of her own. Suddenly, both began to have feelings rushing through their minds that felt more intense than before, as the two began to lean in slightly, only to be interrupted by the cook bringing them their pizza all ready to eat.

Speaking slightly flustered at what almost nearly happened, Jace looked at the man and said, "Oh... um... thanks."

Pizza hot and ready to eat, Jace said a quick prayer over the meal and the two began to dig in to the delicious circle of dough and meat. Upon tasting the interesting concoction Jace had picked out for them both, Adele's eyes widened at the flavor and said, "Wow, how did you know that these toppings would taste so good?"

Looking up from his plate, cheese slightly hanging from his lip, Jace replied, "Oh... well it was a recipe my dad experimented with a few months ago. When he first made it, I was pretty surprised to see how good the taste of Prosciutto really was."

"How cool," said Adele as she continued to savor the great flavor of the pizza. "Sounds like he's quite the chef."

"You'll find it funny," he said with the same piece of cheese hanging from his lip. "He never likes to think of himself as a chef, but gives that title to my grandpa who taught him how to cook."

Giggling sightly at the fact Jace wasn't able to recognize that he had cheese dangling from his lip, Adele said in between her laughing, "Th-That's pretty co-cool."

Curious to her actions the young teen boy asked, "What's so funny?"

Trying to stifle her laughing, the giggling girl said, "I'm sorry. I just thought I'd warn you, you have a piece of cheese hanging from your mouth."

"What? Where?" he asked sounding slightly panicked.

Adele pointed to where he could find it, and with his napkin in hand, Jace finally removed the fragmented item of food from his lip. Acting a little shocked, the boy asked, "Why didn't you tell me it was hanging there sooner?"

Smiling rather widely, Adele said, "Because you looked so funny how you kept talking and didn't notice it right from the start."

As she continued to eat her own slices of pizza, Jace retreated into his mind again and thought, _Wonderful Jace. First it was the compliment that seemed too fast, and now you're getting caught with food on your face? What's next?_

In the end, the boy sucked it up and laughed at himself saying, "Well, looks like my poem earlier wasn't the only funny point of this afternoon huh?"

"Well..." she started. "That was cute to hear, but this was just funny to see. But either way, you're still pretty awesome Jace."

Letting a shade of pink appear on his face, Jace said back, "You're pretty awesome yourself Adele." And with his flattering words, the two continued to enjoy the remaining goodness of the pizza in front of them as the beautiful sunny day continued to shine down.


	12. Chapter 12

Note: I do not own Code Lyoko, nor any of it's characters, scenarios or locations. I also do not own any of the original characters noted in this story (all except one in Jace Stevens). Code Lyoko appears courtesy of Moonscoop Productions and Taffy Entertainment, while each original character noted is an original work of codelyokofan92 on deviantART.

* * *

**Chapter 12**

As Jace took care of the payment for the delicious dinner, and the two walked out the door fromthe restaurant, both looked up and suddenly noticed it was beginning to get dark pretty quick, confirmed by Jace's phone showing that it was now 5:30PM.

"Wow," he said noticing a hint of the moon showing in the sky. "Weird how it gets so dark now that it's fall again."

"Yeah, it's kinda creepy," she said looking at the same moon Jace was looking at. "But oddly enough, I like the fact you can see the moon so brightly during this time."

Looking at her slightly mesmerized by the glow of the sphere hanging in the sky, Jace said, "Yeah, even looking at the stars and how they kinda show a trail leading to the moon. Reminds me a little of a movie I watched a couple years ago called _WALL-E."_

"Oh yeah, I know what you mean," she replied reflecting on the scene where WALL-E touches the stars in space as he floated with the ship. "Makes me wish we could touch them like that ourselves."

It was at this moment Adele had an idea of another fun thing the two of them could do, but feared that it might backfire being that it would involve possible humiliation from her parents.

"Hey," she said rather excitedly. "I've got an idea... why don't we go back to my place and watch _WALL-E _together?"

Jace's face quickly lit up to her idea and after a couple of seconds the boy replied saying, "That would be fun. I haven't seen the movie in so long, I forgot a lot of the other scenes."

And without a moment to spare, the two quickly walked off together hand in hand back to the Belpois home to watch the movie together. But as the two walked together, Adele was unaware of a crack in the sidewalk that was wide enough she could trip on it, and without knowing it was there, the girl suddenly stepped into the gaping crease and lost her balance about ready to fall to the ground.

But before she could hit the ground, Jace quickly acted as he reached for her hand and pulled her back towards him to help her avoid the fall. With his quick thinking, the boy saved the slightly rattled girl from falling face first to the pavement, and held her close to him to help her recover.

Trying to catch her breath, Adele lifted her head to see Jace's face and said, "Thanks for saving me there. I would've probably lost some teeth."

"Well let's be thankful you didn't lose anything at all," he said still holding the girl in his arms.

However, it was at this moment the two quickly realized the rather interesting position they were in, and like a scene from a romantic movie, the two quickly separated with a furious blush developing on both their faces, and continued to make there way for Adele's home, still maintaining a hold of each other's hands to make sure nothing like that happened again.

Finally, after about another 20 minutes of walking, the two arrived back at the Belpois home and walked in to find that Mr. and Mrs. Belpois were standing nearby the stairs in the entryway appearing to be headed out on their own dinner date.

"Hey mom, hey dad," she said walking in the doorway. "What's this? You both are gonna go out tonight too?"

Mr. Belpois nodded his head and said, "Well, it's a special date for a special day for us both."

"Oh really?" said Maya now entering the conversation. "And just what day is that?"

Seeming to look slightly off base, both Mr. and Mrs. Belpois paused for about a few seconds before Mrs. Belpois jumped in and said, "Well, you kids don't know it, but this was the day that we first met."

To both Maya and Adele, something didn't quite seem right in the way their parents mentioned this rather memorable day. However, both thought it silly that their parents would hide anything from them and quickly forgot their suspicions.

"Well, hope you both have fun!" said Maya as she darted back up the stairs to her room.

"We will honey," replied Mr. Belpois. Looking back over to Jace and Adele, he then asked, "So, how was the lunch at _Le Pizza Magnifique_?"

A smile now showing on her face, Adele said, "It was great dad. Jace suggested we try this different combination of toppings and it had a flavor like I've never tasted before on pizza." Remembering another memorable moment, she then added, "Oh, and I made Jace recite a poem he wrote back in fourth grade."

Acknowledging the embarrassing moment, Jace nodded his head and said, "Well, it wasn't just me reading. She also read a snow poem she wrote in the sixth grade which sounded way better than what I wrote. She's such a great poet."

"Indeed she is," affirmed Mrs. Belpois. "That's why she's our writer of the family."

Blushing at her mother's flattery, Adele opened the door for her parents to let them head off for their date.

But before they departed, Mr. Belpois asked with parental curiosity, "So, what are both of you planning for the rest of the night?"

Slightly nervous to answer his question, Adele said, "Oh, um... we're gonna just chill and watch _WALL-E_ together."

"That's the plan," added Jace trying to reassure them. "We had both talked about it earlier before leaving the restaurant, and thought it would be a fun idea to follow lunch."

Looking at each other, both Mr. and Mrs. Belpois approved of their plans and gave their consent for them to do so, but warned them that while they were out, Maya was in charge and that they were not to open the door for anyone or do anything crazy or inappropriate. Adele agreed to their conditions and watched as the two walked around the corner and out of sight from the porch.

Closing the door behind her, Adele asked feeling a little more calm, "So, how about I go get the movie and pop us some popcorn to enjoy?"

"Sure thing," replied Jace. "You need any help at all getting things all set up?"

"Yeah actually," she said walking into the kitchen. "If you could, turn on the TV and set the channel to DVD."

Jace quickly did so and looked to find a comfortable spot on the couch for them to sit and enjoy the movie. As he did so, the boy noticed a picture showing what appeared to be a shot of Adele's parents, the Stern parents, and what may have been the Della Robbia parents all together as a group.

Looking at the tight-knit group in the picture, Jace thought, _Man, Yumiko's parents weren't kidding when they said they hung out together a lot. They seem to be as happy as the gang is when they're all together._

But as he pondered this thought, something else caught Jace's eye on the picture, which appeared to be a small insignia of some kind shown on Mr. Belpois's laptop. The insignia appeared to resemble a familiar eye-like symbol he saw hanging from a necklace on Mrs. Stern's neck the other night. Seeing this symbol reappear again, the boy's suspicions began to grow more as he wondered why this symbol seemed to be a recurring theme among the parents of the gang.

"They look so much like us don't they?" said Adele as she walked in with the DVD and bowl of popcorn in hand.

"Yeah they do," said Jace as she sat down next to him. "I'd imagine they all probably met because of a similar interest."

Adele agreed and then took a look at the picture herself, only to then also discover the same eye-like symbol shown on her father's laptop. Now growing curious herself, Adele said pointing to the symbol, "Hmm, kinda an interesting symbol there. I wonder what it could mean."

"Not sure," replied Jace. "Maybe it was a symbol of a rock group or a movie they liked. Though it's funny, I saw the same symbol on a necklace Yumiko's mom was wearing that night we were watching the movies at their place."

"Really?" asked Adele rather intrigued. "Hmm, that's kinda strange. Especially if it was something that was familiar to them then, and still is now."

Both continued to ponder on the idea, but eventually didn't seek it further as they figured it would be more fun to enjoy _WALL-E_, and with that both started the movie and partook of the bowl of popcorn set out before them.

As the movie began to reach a key moment with the initial meeting of EVE and WALL-E, Adele decided in her mind that it was her turn to initiate the romance, and found herself resting her head on Jace's shoulder like she did the other night. It was at that moment that the ascot cap-wearing boy's heart was practically flying out of his chest, as he slowly wrapped his arm around her shoulder to hold her close.

Suddenly, Adele became entranced both in the mix of the cute romantic interaction between both robots sharing an electric "kiss," as well as hearing the harmonic sound of Jace's heart beating in time with hers, and felt herself having thoughts of another potential moment taking place... the first kiss.

Unknown to her, Jace himself also began to entertain the potential idea of sharing a kiss with Adele, but thought, _Wait a minute Jace. Have you forgotten, it's still only the first date. How about showing a little patience before you finally kiss her, huh?_

But to both Jace and Adele, patience wasn't a word that meshed with their teenage vocabulary, and the two found themselves moving closer and closer to each other, allowing their hands to lace together much like EVE's and WALL-E's in the climactic final scene.

Jace then allowed his free hand to gently caress Adele's soft cheek that now felt warm likely from a mad blush developing, and with tenderness and care, both the young teens allowed their lips to meet in a fashion so electric, they both felt as if a proverbial spark just charged through them.

And it wasn't just a tiny peck, they both allowed themselves to make out for about ten seconds, up until they both found themselves gasping for air to fill their small-sized lungs.

Reveling in the afterglow of such a powerful moment, Jace said in such a cliché manner, "Wow, I guess WALL-E and EVE weren't the only ones to feel a spark."

Smiling with glassy eyes, Adele said, "I don't think I've ever felt anything like that before." And with the moment still feeling slightly heated, Adele asked, "Could we do it again?"

Smiling back, Jace said, "I'd like that." And with the same gentle approach, Jace caressed his lips with the soft sweetness of Adele's and both allowed for their fears as teenagers to melt away as innocent passion surrounded them both."

But alas, human nature took effect once more, as the front doorknob turned slowly and Mr. and Mrs. Belpois walked in, forcing the two to quickly separate and act as if nothing happened.

However, as they walked in, Adele and Jace quickly noticed there was a slight bit of silence that loomed over Adele's parents that seemed rather tense.

"What's wrong with them?" asked Adele slightly confused. "A couple hours ago they seemed rather happy, and now they seem so mad."

"I don't know," replied Jace. "Maybe we should try and find out."

Agreeing with him, both decided to head up the stairs and slowly walked over to the door to Mr. and Mrs. Belpois's bedroom, pressing their ears against the door to catch a slight sound of why the two seemed so tense.

* * *

"Jeremie, you know we have to tell them eventually," said Mrs. Belpois to her husband in a slightly monotone voice.

"I know that Aelita," replied Mr. Belpois rather upset. "But I just don't want our daughters to have to go through that kind of scrutiny in their lives if anything got out to the public. Not to mention if that boy starts going out with Adele, I don't think he would be able to take it either. They're only teenagers after all."

"I know honey," Mrs. Belpois replied back with a now more soothing tone. "I know you want to protect our children. But sweetheart, what you need to realize is that the past is the past. While both of us, and our children can now live in peace without XANA coming back to haunt us again, it's not fair to them both that we hide secrets like Lyoko from them when the only secrets they try to hide from us are who they're dating or if they cheated on a test."

* * *

From behind the door, Jace and Adele lipped the words, "XANA" and "Lyoko" back at each other, feeling even more confused than they did discovering their new romance.

* * *

Still feeling slightly off ease, Mr. Belpois walked over and took his pink-haired bride in his arms and continued the dialogue, "And Lord knows I want to tell them too. I don't like having to hide it any more that you do. But I just don't think I can tell them yet. And deep down you know you feel the same way."

With about a five second pause Mrs. Belpois let out a deep sigh and said, "You're right. It is likely they wouldn't understand something so deep. I'm sure even Yumi and Ulrich's and Odd's children wouldn't be able to grasp such a big idea either."

"So it's settled," replied Mr. Belpois. "We'll continue to keep this a secret from them until the time is right."

"For now," answered Mrs. Belpois passing along a kiss to her husband. "But promise that when the time is right, we both will tell them and not go behind the other's back."

Looking into his bride's shining green eyes, Jeremie said, "I promise," as silence once again filled the room on the other side of the door.

* * *

Walking back down the stairs in such a covert fashion, Adele looked at Jace and said, "What the heck is going on? What could they possibly mean by us not understanding something so deep?"

"Or even those names they mentioned, 'Lyoko' and 'XANA,'" added Jace feeling that same sense of confusion as before.

"I don't know what's happening," said Adele rather profoundly. "But one thing's for sure, if my parents, the Stern parents and even Oliver and Carine's father are hiding something from us they don't want us to know about, we're just gonna have to figure it out for ourselves."

Looking at the young blonde girl with a newfound admiration, Jace said, "Well, if you're sure this is what you want to do, you can count me in to help in any way I can."

"Thanks Jace," replied Adele as she walked him to the front door. "And thanks for the fun time today, I enjoyed every minute of it."

"Likewise," said Jace with a smile on his face, and he wrapped his arms around Adele with her following suit, and shared one final deep kiss before the two would have to separate for Jace to go home.

As he walked down the pathway in her front yard, Adele ran out and said, "Jace wait!"

"Yeah," he replied.

Even after that earlier sense of confidence she had sharing a passionate kiss with him the youngest of the Belpois family uttered, "Um, if you would like to, would you... um... want to join me and Maya for our Sunday sermon at our junior high ministry?"

Flattered by her request, Jace accepted and said, "I'd be honored. Sounds like it would be a lot of fun."

"Great!" shouted Adele as she gave him the information about her church and the starting time for the sermon.

"See you then," said Jace after planting one more gentle kiss on Adele's lips.

"See you then," uttered Adele still slightly caught in ecstasy from the feeling of Jace kissing her.

As the girl closed the front door and walked up the stairs to get ready for bed, Adele couldn't help but feel a strange combination of both concern, as well as bliss over each of the new discoveries that took place during the day. What would happen now between Jace and Adele after this date? Were they officially an item? Was it right to call him her boyfriend? And what about this secret her parents couldn't tell her? What was "Lyoko" and this "XANA" thing?

Every one of these questions furiously ran through her mind, but finally came to a halt as she received a text from Jace that read, _"Had such a great time with you tonight. Sleep tightly, and don't worry, we'll figure out what's going on with this secret... Blessed dreams Princess... X. ;)"_

Seeing his comforting words, Adele texted him back and said, _"I had a great time too with you. Look forward to more fun times to come that we'll share. See you at my church tomorrow. Sweet dreams sweet Prince... X. ;)"_

Finally, as the girl lay her head on her pillow for a good night's rest ahead, Adele looked up once more to Heaven above and prayed that God would help her and Jace to develop their new relationship together, and for His guidance to be provided for them to search deeper into the secret her parents were keeping from her.

Ironic enough, in his own room Jace chose to pray for much the same thing, as well as for his visit to Adele's church to go smoothly with a great message in store for them both to hear.

"In your Holy Name Father... Amen," they said, now allowing the sweet serenity of sleep to claim them in it's comforting and secure embrace.


	13. Chapter 13

Note: I do not own Code Lyoko, nor any of it's characters, scenarios or locations. I also do not own any of the original characters noted in this story (all except two in Jace Stevens and Luke). Code Lyoko appears courtesy of Moonscoop Productions and Taffy Entertainment, while each original character noted is an original work of codelyokofan92 on deviantART.

* * *

**Chapter 13**

Jace had never been to a smaller-sized church like Adele's before. He had felt more used to the bigger and more hard-to-navigate environment of his megachurch back in Paris, so stepping into a youth ministry with about 50 teens caused the young boy to feel slightly like a fish out of water.

As the newcomer teen stepped into the unfamiliar walls of the church's junior high youth group named Thrive, Jace begun to experience a feeling that felt all too familiar when he stepped onto the Kadic campus... nervousness to the highest extent.

But before he could became overcome by his unending shyness, the boy's new blonde-haired Princess came over to meet him along with Kevin and Maya walking hand in hand.

"Hey there handsome," said Adele, starting to grow more comfortable with Jace now being her boyfriend.

"Hey yourself Princess," he replied placing a small peck on her soft lips. "How'd you sleep last night?"

Bliss on her face, the young girl said, "Pretty peaceful, though I still kept thinking about mom and dad and that secret of theirs."

"I know what you mean," replied Jace still slightly curious as to what her parents could potentially be hiding.

Unknowing of what the two were talking about, Maya interjected saying, "Wait, what secret are you two talking about?"

Before Jace or Adele could say anything about the conversation heard the other night, the youth pastor called everybody in to have a seat and get comfortable for a great day of rejoicing the Name of Jesus.

"I gotta say," Jace whispered as the pastor spoke. "I've never been a youth group this small. It's pretty interesting."

"Aww, don't worry," replied Adele holding his hand on the table in front of them. "You're gonna love it. You'll definitely enjoy the worship."

And with her comforting words, the service began, and all including Jace himself, became surrounded with the love of the Holy Spirit as they sang two of the boy's favorite worship songs, _"Hosanna" _and _"Grace Like Rain."_

At that moment, Jace's nerves began to fade away quicker, and the boy began to feel more comfortable as the pastor spoke about how followers of Christ should learn to keep themselves accountable for the things they say and do (both to others and Christ Himself), and in doing so, only then can their hearts become more stronger to resist temptation and embrace God's call for their lives.

Unknown to both of them, Jace and Adele both felt that this was something in their hearts they both wanted to live out, and hoped that soon enough, Maya and Adele's parents wouldn't be so afraid to live out themselves.

As the pastor finished his sermon, and everyone partook in singing _"Blessed Be Your Name," _everyone was wished a good week ahead, and dispersed from the youth building. But before leaving the building as a group, Kevin broke away to meet up with another friend of his.

The boy meeting up with Kevin appeared to be just slightly taller then him, and had a lean physique wearing a green collared shirt over a white under shirt, and dark green cargo pants. Both the teens seemed to get along pretty well, and appeared to enjoy conversations with each other.

Walking over together, the boy greeted Maya and Adele and then introduced himself to Jace saying, "Nice to meet you dude. Luke Porter's the name."

"Nice to meet you too," he replied shaking his hand. "The name's Jace, Jace Stevens."

As they hung out together, Luke asked Jace if he enjoyed the Thrive service, to which Jace replied, "It's definitely a lot different than what I used to go to when I lived in Paris. But I definitely enjoyed it a lot, especially the message."

"Good to hear," said Luke, happy to hear Jace enjoyed the service. Looking back to everyone in the group, the lean teen asked, "Oh, by the way, have you guys heard about that story being passed around Kadic?"

"What story?" asked Maya inquisitively.

Luke then gave the floor to Kevin to speak, and after about a couple seconds the oldest of the Stern family said, "Get this... apparently a legend exists that there's an old abandoned factory not too far from Kadic, that's said to be haunted with ghosts, and apparently some kids are daring to make the trip there later this week, seeing as how Halloween's coming soon."

"Really? Haunted?" asked Jace slightly unconvinced.

"That's what the legend says," replied Luke having heard the legend himself. "Word is most of them are gone now, but there's supposed to be one ghost there that still haunts the factory. Some say he's dark in appearance, but some have said he almost looks like a person. One kid even said he looks like a giant eye watching you."

Hearing the very description of this "ghost" scared both Maya and Adele so much they clinged onto their boyfriends for dear life. However, upon hearing the last thought of the "ghost's" appearance, Jace then asked, "Wait, did you say, a giant eye watching you?"

"Yep," said Luke. "I guess from what that kid said though, it didn't look like a normal eye. Apparently it looked different, like it had three pupils instead of just one."

Pondering on the new bit of information Luke mentioned, Jace suddenly had a moment of inspiration hit him, and asked Luke, "Just curious, when are all the kids wanting to go down to this factory?"

"What? Jace are you crazy?" asked Adele with heavy concern. "You heard him, it's supposed to be haunted. You could probably get hurt if you went."

Reassuring her with a firm hold of her hands, Jace said, "Don't worry Princess, I'm just curious when everyone's going." Looking over Luke's way, he then asked, "Well, any idea?"

"From what I hear, some are planning for this Wednesday night," replied Luke affirming that he would likely go then.

"Hmm, maybe if we got the whole group together to go..." he said. "... it wouldn't be such a bad idea. Heck, it might even be fun."

Seeing fright develop on their faces, Maya and Adele asked their boyfriends, "But... aren't you both scared of what could happen?"

Looking at each other trying to exhibit confidence for their girlfriends, both shook their heads and affirmed their manliness with Kevin saying, "As long as we stick together as a group, we'll be okay."

Adding to the macho-ness of the situation, Jace said in affirmation, "Have no fear fair maidens, we shall protect thee."

"Sounds good," said Luke slightly laughing as he prepared to head on his way. "Will likely see you guys then."

Finally, the group of four began to make their way back for the Belpois's SUV to head home. But as they walked back, Jace took hold of Adele's slightly shaking hand and asked, "You okay?"

Still with a slightly frightened look on her face, Adele asked, "Why do you want to go there? Is this some kind of test you're trying to pull to make me nervous?"

Shaking his head, Jace said something that partially changed Adele's sense of fear, to a slightly greater sense of intrigue, "Don't worry. That whole "ghost" thing is probably just a legend and nothing more. But something about that description Luke gave about how that "ghost" looked to one kid caught my attention. In fact, it kinda reminded me of that symbol on your dad's laptop, and the one on Mrs. Ishiyama's necklace."

Sort of realizing where he was coming from, Adele asked, "You mean when he said the 'eye' had three pupils on it?'"

"Yep," he replied.

Still slightly confused and scared, the girl then asked, "But what could that ghost have to do with Kevin's parents and my parents, and that symbol we saw?"

"To be honest, I don't know," said Jace being frank. "But one thing's for sure, that description sounded pretty close to that symbol in that picture, and I'm kinda curious to see if it could match up. Who knows... if it does, maybe it can explain more about this secret your parents mentioned the other night."

"Maybe," replied Adele nervously. "I don't know though Jace, it still sounds pretty scary. I don't know if I can do it."

Taking hold of her shaking hands, Jace gave them a gentle kiss and said, "It'll be okay. If anything goes wrong, I'll protect you."

Looking up at him, Adele asked, "Really? You'll protect me?"

"I promise," he said holding her close now. "You're my girlfriend. And that's what boyfriends do for their girlfriends. I'm not gonna let anything, or anyone hurt you."

Wrapping her arms around him, Adele pulled her guardian Prince close to her and kissed him saying, "Okay. If you think this may help with the secret, I'll go with you."

Giving her a gentle kiss back, Jace said, "Sounds good. But if we do go, we'd better Kevin and Maya about the conversation from last night and make sure they come along too."

"Especially them both," replied Adele, knowing the fact this secret involved Maya, and even Kevin too. "What about the others too? Yumiko, Tristan, Oliver and Carine?"

Having thought about the other Stern siblings and even the Della Robbias, Jace figured it would be best to wait until they had definitive proof to let them know about the secret conversation and if there was any reason to believe they would need to be concerned.

Agreeing with his logic, the two continued to walk hand in hand, and made their way into the Belpois family SUV to head home. As they drove along the three-mile stretch of road, Mr. and Mrs. Belpois asked the kids what they had learned from their message, to which Maya said, "It was about keeping accountable with others, just as we keep ourselves accountable with Christ."

"Definitely something we can all take to heart," said Mrs. Belpois looking at Jeremie with a look of distress, to which he nodded his head and continued to drive home.

It was at that moment Jace and Adele realized, if in fact they were trying to keep something from her and Maya that they themselves were not being accountable with them in their own right. What could possibly be so bad about this secret that they would choose to keep the truth hidden from them?

In the end, all that mattered now, was that the two new young lovebirds, were now preparing to embark on a journey that, while filled with fright, could prove to be a great revelation to this hidden truth.


	14. Chapter 14

Note: I do not own Code Lyoko, nor any of it's characters, scenarios or locations. I also do not own any of the original characters noted in this story (all except three in Jace Stevens, Luke, and Katie Michaels). Code Lyoko appears courtesy of Moonscoop Productions and Taffy Entertainment, while each original character noted is an original work of codelyokofan92 on deviantART.

* * *

**Chapter 14**

Fall could definitely be felt in the air around the campus of Kadic Academy. Everywhere you looked, the halls and corridors were littered with pictures of Jack-O-Lanterns, leaves colored in orange and yellow, and the bitter chill of the brisk fall winds signaling the return of sweaters and jackets.

And this proved no exception to the gang, as each came readily bundled up in their fleece jackets and scarves around the necks of the ladies. However, as they came together at the cafeteria for lunch, something caught each of the teens' eyes that caused them to break out in laughter. In walked a hesitant Tristan wearing what appeared to be a pink fleece sweater that read, "Girls Rule!" in white print. Viewing this sight proved to be too much for the girls to take and all four laughed uncontrollably at the fact that this sweater belonged to one of them.

Trying to stifle his laughter, Oliver looked at Tristan and asked, "Um... I'm gonna go out on a limb and say you either didn't do your wash and had nothing else to wear, or you lost a bet to Yumiko and were forced to wear that."

Everybody continued to try and keep themselves from laughing, while Tristan held his head down in embarrassment. Adding to the humiliation, Yumiko entered in saying, "Your second guess was right. I challenged him to five rounds of Pac-Man, and he lost on the last match, to which my reward was I got to choose something he had to wear to school for one day that was from my closet.

"Doesn't he look just precious?" she said trying to pat him on the head, only to have her hand slapped away by Tristan still in a huff.

"Aww, come on Tristan," said Kevin trying to empathize. "You should have known that Yumiko doesn't generally lose at that game."

Finally raising his head, Tristan reluctantly said, "I came so close. That close, and somehow she still ended up knocking me out."

"Don't worry Tristan, you'll figure it out one day," said Yumiko.

"And what's exactly is it?" asked Tristan sarcastically.

Pointing to her sweater he was now wearing, Yumiko repeated the words that her sweater so aptly quoted, "That 'Girls Rule.'"

At that moment, the girls couldn't help but high-five each other, while the boys looked at each other feeling slightly emasculated. But before they could live up that confidence, Jace and Kevin thought of an idea and said, "Well, since you girls are so confident, how about a challenge we can all participate in to see who really is better?"

Quickly silenced, Maya asked, "And what kind of challenge would that be exactly?"

Smirking rather slyly, Kevin said, "All of us as a group will go down to the old abandoned factory tonight Luke talked about with the other students. Whoever can stay there the longest from the group, will be named the bravest of the group and if it's a boy, one of the girls of his choosing, will have to shout 'Boys rule!' to the entire school."

"What, are you crazy? Going to that old facto..." asked Maya as her words were suddenly cut off by a nudge from Kevin, reminding her of why they needed to go to the factory.

"Oh... hmm..." she said playing the role of thinking deeply. "Okay fine, but if a girl wins, then the boy of her choosing from the group needs to take a megaphone, and shout out from the top of the dormitory, 'Girls rule forever!'"

Everyone in the group took a moment to think about the challenge proposed while Kevin, Maya, Adele, and Jace already knew their decision.

After about five minutes of thought, Yumiko finally broke the silence and said, "Okay then, I'm in. Anything to watch Tristan and Kevin have to actually say 'Girls rule' to everyone on campus."

Soon after the rest of the group agreed to do so, though fear could still be easily seen on the faces of the ladies, even on the faces of Adele and Maya knowing what the true extent of this challenge was for.

Walking out from the cafeteria, Jace stopped Adele as the group separated for their classes. Trying to be reassuring, the determined boy took hold of the still slightly fearful girl's hands and looked deep into her cerulean eyes asking, "You sure you're ready to take this on?"

Looking back up at him with sincerity on her face, the girl placed a gentle kiss on her boyfriend's lips and said, "I'm sure. I know I was feeling afraid before, but somehow, the fact that we may find out something through this challenge seems rather calming.

"And besides," she continued, about to parrot some familiar words, "if anything goes wrong, you'll protect me right?"

Cupping her soft cheek in his hand, Jace kissed her forehead and replied, "Indeed I shall." And with that, the two ran off to endure the remaining day of classes, preparing themselves for a night of fright and potential revelations.

* * *

After classes had wrapped up and kids began to depart for their dormitories, the gang met up just outside the cafeteria to rendezvous with another small contingent of kids led by Luke, prepared to embark on the journey ahead.

As they convened, everyone explained how they convinced their parents how they would be home late after a chaperoned night in the recreation room on campus.

"I almost thought dad wouldn't buy it," said Oliver as wrapped his arm around Katie as she let a chill make her shiver.

"Same here," said Tristan. "When we told our parents, they hounded on us to be careful and gave us the whole, 'Stick together,' speech."

Although that would likely prove a valuable piece of advice, as Luke gathered everyone together to explain the plan for the night ahead.

"Glad you guys showed up," said Luke. "This will make for an easier trip if we go as a group this big."

"So, what's the plan Luke?" asked Kevin as everyone circled around.

Clearing his throat, Luke said, "Well, from what I've seen, there's an old sewer line hidden in the forest that runs from the campus all the way to a bridge that connects the city street to the factory. Since the entrance is fenced up, we're gonna have to take the sewer all the way over to a manhole that passes through the fence.

"Once there," he continued, "we'll have a direct entry into the factory. However, the difficult part, is getting down to the ground floor. To do so, we'll swing from ropes hanging in the ceiling that were left there from years ago to head down."

Switching to a more serious tone, Luke then said, "Now, here's the most important thing... stay on the ground floor. Don't go anywhere else, or you're likely to get lost and won't find your way back. Oh, and also, if any of you hear something like a wail or howl while we're there, or if you see a figure that doesn't look like us, get out of there quickly, and head back for the entrance. Everyone clear?"

It was at this moment everyone agreed to the plan, yet fear was obviously present among some of the kids there. In fact, as they began to head for the forest, some of the boys' hands became numb with the tightening grips of their girlfriends' shaking hands, which set in their own fear... a fear of losing their limbs.

But after about a five minute walk in the forest, the entry appeared that would lead the group into the sewer line connecting the campus to the factory. Unlatching the cover from the entry, Luke descended first, while the others carefully followed suit, now more frightened by the limited light shining from the sewer lamps and the light of the moon.

As they walked through the sewer tunnel, Maya and Kevin moved over towards Jace and Adele and asked, "So, what's the plan? We going to stay with the group, or break off on our own?"

"Well, whatever happens," said Jace, "we can't leave everyone to fend for themselves. It's best we all just stay together as a group."

"I agree," said Maya. "At the very least, we'll likely get scared out of our minds. But who knows, this could be a trip that changes things completely for us."

Nodding his head, Kevin passed along their plan to his brother and sister, the Della Robbias, and Katie, as the group continued to walk the seemingly endless tunnel.

After about 20 more minutes, everyone came to see a pentagon-patterned shine of light appearing on the ground, a sign that they reached the manhole cover. Lifting the cover up, Luke continued to lead the gang as they now walked out into the open air, and saw the run-down factory in front of them.

Approaching the entry of the factory, Luke jumped on the rope in front of them and showed them how to slide down to the ground. The group of 13 students then followed his example and landed safely, ready for the big moment.

Taking a deep breath, Luke began again saying, "This is it. Now, everybody remembers the plan. Meet back here in about a half hour. If you're not back within a 20 minute window, you're on your own to find your way back."

Agreeing to the condition, everybody separated and began to peruse the factory in smaller groups, with Luke traveling in a group of three, and the gang making up the remaining nine.


	15. Chapter 15

Note: I do not own Code Lyoko, nor any of it's characters, scenarios or locations. I also do not own any of the original characters noted in this story (all except two in Jace Stevens and Katie Michaels). Code Lyoko appears courtesy of Moonscoop Productions and Taffy Entertainment, while each original character noted is an original work of codelyokofan92 on deviantART.

* * *

**Chapter 15**

Turning on their flashlights, Jace, Kevin, and Oliver led the group as they looked around the beaten down facility. Just the sound of the cold winds rushing through the thin walls and the sight of paper and metal blowing across the floor set in a twinge of fear on the kids' faces.

"Oliver, I'm scared," said Katie as she held onto him for dear life. "How do we know where we're going?"

"I don't know," he replied slightly afraid himself. "We just gotta stick together, that's all we can do."

Looking around, Tristan said fearfully, "Well I don't know about you guys, but I'm just about ready to head back now."

"I can't believe I'm saying this," added Yumiko, "but I'm with my brother on this one. Let's go back guys."

"Come on you guys," said Jace. "We've only been in here for five minutes, and you guys want to call it quits? What happened to the challenge?"

Remembering the humiliation they would likely have to endure, both Stern siblings sucked it up and continued the haunting walk.

As they turned a corner, Jace began to hear a noise that about made him jump out of his skin. It was the sound of a moan coming from a wall in the middle of the factory near what appeared to be an elevator shaft.

"Did you guys hear that?" he asked.

"Yep," the others said in unison.

Pointing in the direction of the elevator shaft, Kevin said, "Sounds like it came from over there."

The gang then took a deep breath and began to make their way towards the elevator shaft, now beginning to hear the same moaning sound growing slightly louder as they got closer.

"What the heck is that?" asked Maya holding on to her boyfriend for comfort.

"Definitely sounds like a moan," said Jace. "But from what though?"

Finally, reaching the entry into the elevator shaft, the moaning appeared to stop, providing some comfort for the gang, only to then be ended quickly as they began to see what appeared to be a form of mark on the wall of the elevator.

It was at this moment something about this mark seemed familiar to Kevin, Maya, Adele, and Jace, and the four walked into the elevator shaft to examine the mark with the gang following behind them.

"Is... is that it?" asked Adele as she reached into her pocket.

"I think so," replied Jace, his curiosity now reaching its peak.

"Wait, what exactly is the 'it' you're talking about guys?" asked Carine feeling a strange mix of fear and confusion.

Adele then pulled out of her pocket, the picture of her parents and the other kids' parents together as a group, and realized that the very symbol on the wall, matched the exact same symbol on her father's laptop; the same three-pupil eye mark.

"I don't believe it," said Maya amazed at the very thought this mark having a relation to both her and her sister's father and mother. It didn't take long before the other kids looked at the same picture over Adele's shoulder and saw that their parents appeared to be affiliated with this mark in some way too.

Caught up in the amazement, the kids became completely unaware that the elevator door was now closing on them and appeared to begin descending down the shaft. The kids screamed with fright as they had no idea where this elevator was going, or what would happen to them.

Not knowing what to do, the girls held onto those they were closest to for comfort, but were soon relieved when the elevator stopped. But before they could feel any relief at all, the kids' then noticed the door didn't open and panic set in once more at the thought of being trapped in a scene like that of a horror movie where they would remain locked in the elevator forever.

Turning back on his flashlight, Jace shined the light over near the door, and saw what looked like a keypad of some kind with a message that appeared in a small crevice near the keypad.

Reading it aloud, the message said, "Door code: 3258#."

Following the code on the message, Jace typed in the key sequence and leapt back along with the gang as the elevator door slowly opened, revealing a sight that took all the kids' breath away.

On the other side of the door, stood a large room with what appeared to be a giant computer system sitting in the middle, surrounded by massive-sized cables and some kind of center console that had a cone-like opening.

While the gang was initially speechless at the sight before them, the silence finally became broken as Maya uttered, "Okay, now I am definitely freaked out."

"Me too," said Kevin. "Why do I get the feeling this factory has something a little more scarier than just an old ghost story?"

"Whatever it is," said Carine, "Somehow our parents are related to this place... to this thing, whatever it could be."

Suddenly, Adele remembered something that her parents said on the night that she and Jace had their first date regarding something called, "Lyoko," and wondered if this mysterious looking computer may in fact have something to do with this odd-sounding word.

But before she could dwell on the thought, Kevin and Maya appeared to head back for the elevator shaft, looking as though they were ready to take off.

"Maya, Kevin, wait!" she said quickly. "Where are you both going?"

Jace then quickly followed after his girlfriend, as Maya said to her sister, "Kevin said he found something in the elevator that made him think this isn't the only room hidden here."

"Wait, what?" asked Jace slightly puzzled. "You mean there could be others like this?"

"I don't know," said Kevin. "But look over here..."

Kevin then pointed to a switchboard sitting on the right-hand side of the elevator next to the door code panel. By the look of the panel, there appeared to be two other tabs that would connect to two other rooms aside from the main floor they entered in from.

Keeping the thought of staying together in mind, the others joined the curious teens in the elevator shaft. Once all there, Jace hit the second button below the switch that led into the room they were just in.

Suddenly, panic seemed to dissipate from everyone, and was quickly replaced with sheer curiosity as to what this place could be, and what their parents' roles could be in this mysterious factory.

As the doors reopened once more, the gang then mirrored their actions from before as they became awestruck at the sight of three special cylinders standing in front of them, each appearing to measure from the floor to the ceiling, and large enough to fit a human inside.

Looking at the cables connecting to the cylinders, Jace said, "Okay, now I'm officially clueless. What the heck are these things?"

"Search me," said Tristan now appearing to have some of his fright gone from the earlier sight. "I wonder if they have something to do with that big computer that was back upstairs?"

"I wouldn't doubt it," said Maya. It was at that moment that something appeared to catch the eldest Belpois child's eye in the cylinder she stood in. With her flashlight, the girl revealed what appeared to be a sole strand of pink hair lying on the bottom of the cylinder.

Holding it up to everyone, Maya said, "Guys, look at this."

"What's wrong Maya? You molting or something?" asked Oliver jokingly.

Carine then slapped her brother outside the head as she continued saying, "No dummy, this isn't mine. It was sitting here when I shined the light on it before I stepped in. Guys... I think this may be a strand of my mother's hair."

Shocked at the strong possibility of this being true, the group examined the other cylinders to see if any other evidence was present that could trace their parents using these cylinders at all. No clues however revealed themselves, as Maya carefully slipped the hair into her pocket for safe keeping.

Suddenly, the group could hear an audible rattle coming from below them, causing Maya, Adele, and Katie to jump into the arms of their boyfriends and Tristan and Yumiko to hide behind Carine.

"Wha... what was that?" asked Adele more scared than ever.

"I don't know," Jace replied holding his blonde-haired angel close. "I think it came from below us. That must be the last room that elevator leads too."

Determined to find out what that last room contained, the group made a quick dash back for the elevator, and with a close of the doors once more, the group hit the last switch on the board to bring the elevator down to the last remaining room in this mysterious chain of rooms never seen by others in the factory.

"What do you think could be on this last floor guys?" asked Jace with his curiosity peaked to it's highest level.

Still slightly puzzled himself, Kevin said, "You're guess is as good as mine dude. But I've got a feeling whatever is on this last floor, is probably the key to all those other rooms, and whatever is on the other side of this door, is gonna explain everything."

And with that, the elevator came to a halt as everyone took the hand of the person next to them, and prepared themselves as the doors began to slide open to reveal the last mysterious room.


End file.
